Doubling of Gorakhpur Cantt-Valmiki Nagar section will benefit North-East: NFR

Guwahati, August 17 (MExN): The doubling of Gorakhpur Cantonment-Valmiki Nagar section, approved during the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 16, will serve as an alternative route to trains moving to and fro from the North-East through the Delhi-Howrah grand chord line, informed on official release.

This alternative rail link will help in reducing the traffic congestion, improving connectivity towards the NE and running of more and more passenger and freight trains towards the region, stated a press release from the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR). 

The section will be completed at an estimated cost of Rs 1269 crore, it said. 

Another project of laying a 3rd line in the Nergundi - Barang and Khurda Road – Vizianagaram section at an estimated cost of Rs. 5000 crores will also serve as an important route for people of NE travelling towards South India for education, medical and employment purpose, the NFR said. 

There is huge traffic congestion from Kolkata to Chennai in this section and the laying of a 3rd line will reduce the traffic congestion and will increase movements of trains, it noted. 

The CCEA chaired by Prime Minister Modi on Wednesday approved seven projects  of the Union Ministry of Railways with estimated cost of around Rs 32,500 crores, with 100% funding from Central Government. The proposals of multi-tracking will ease operations and reduce congestion, providing the much required infrastructural development on the busiest sections across Indian Railways.

The projects covering 35 Districts in 9 States i.e. Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Odisha, Jharkhand and West Bengal will increase the existing network of Indian Railways by 2339 Kms and will provide employment of 7.06 crore man-days to the people of the states,  informed a CCEA release.