Railways Ministry to expedite construction of 14 strategic line projects
The construction of 14 strategic line projects, chiefly in border areas, will be expedited by the Railways Ministry. The border projects on which construction work will be speeded up have not taken off thus far due to paucity of funds. The Railways Ministry has stuck to its stance that the construction of the lines will be taken up only if the Defence Ministry or the Finance Ministry fully-fund the projects.
The 14 strategic line projects include 13 new lines and one rail line doubling project. In all, the projects require the construction of 2,888 km of railway tracks in Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Punjab, Assam, and Arunachal Pradesh.
The recent announcement by the Railways Ministry to accelerate the construction of 14 strategic projects comes within days of Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar’s statement that a policy-framework is being worked out to fast-track environment clearances for projects in border areas.
Revealing that the Finance Minister’s help will be sought in accelerating the construction of 14 border projects, Railways Minister D V Sadananda Gowda said that, if required, the Railways Ministry will receive a “special package” for the completion of these projects.
Gowda also said that the all the concerned ministries — Defence, Railways, Finance, and Home – are collectively responsible for ensuring that “critically strategic projects are put in the fast lane.”
Source – The Indian Express
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