Bhubaneswar: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Wednesday approved three railway projects worth Rs 6,456 crore in Odisha and three other states.
The CCEA in its meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave its nod to the Bargarh Road-Nuapada Road new railway line (138 km) in Odisha.
The new project will boost rail communication between Bargarh and Nuapada districts of Odisha. The project will be implemented with an investment of Rs 2,926 crore, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told reporters in New Delhi.
Similarly, the CCEA has approved new double line between Sardega in Sundargarh district of Odisha and Bhalumuda in Raigarh district of Chhattisgarh. The Centre has allocated Rs 1,360 crore for the 37-km rail line project, the Minister said.
The CCEA also gave its nod to Jamshedpur-Purulia-Asansol (Chandil-Anara-Damodar) third line. The project will boost communication between East Singhbhum district of Jharkhand and Purulia and Bardhaman districts of West Bengal.
The Centre will spend Rs 2,170 crore for the 121-km rail line project, the Railway Minister said.
The three rail projects covering seven districts in four states – Odisha, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Chhattisgarh – will increase the existing network of Indian Railways by about 300 km.
As many as 14 new stations will be constructed as part of the three projects. The new line projects will provide connectivity to around 1,300 villages and 11 lakh people. The multi-tracking project will enhance connectivity to around 1,300 villages and 19 lakh people, the Minister said.
These new rail projects will further boost the transportation of commodities including agriculture products, fertilizer, coal, iron ore, steel, cement and limestone. The capacity augmentation works will result in additional freight traffic of around 45 MTPA, he said.
