Strategic line near chicken's neck to steel corridor, Cabinet clears key rail expansion projects
These new projects, spanning a cumulative 574 km across 13 districts of six states, are estimated to cost Rs 11,168 crore.
They involve the construction of the third and fourth lines between Aluabari Road and New Jalpaiguri (near the so-called chicken's neck), a fourth line between Itarsi and Nagpur which is part of the Delhi-Chennai network, and the third and fourth lines on the Dangoaposi-Jaroli iron and steel belt. The fourth project is the doubling of the railway line between Aurangabad (Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar) and Parbhani.
The 297-km line between Itarsi (Madhya Pradesh) and Nagpur (Maharashtra) intersects with Mumbai-Howrah network at Nagpur. Officials said the fourth line will decongest the network and enable faster movement of trains. The construction of the line will be complex as it will have 37 stations, 36 major and 415 minor bridges, two overpasses, 74 underpasses, four tunnels and two rail overbridges. Its total estimated cost is Rs 5,451 crore.
The 57-km Aluabari-New Jalpaiguri third and fourth line, which passes through Bihar's Kishanganj and three districts of West Bengal, is of strategic importance as it passes near the only route to enter the North-East from rest of India. It is near the international borders with Bhutan, Bangladesh and Nepal.
The project will have 99 bridges, three overpasses and eight underpasses. Officials said the line expansion will help in the movement of 21.6 million additional tons of cargo.
The 43-km Dangoaposi-Jaroli project connects Odisha's Kendujhar district with Jharkhand's West Singhbhum district, which is one of the highest steel production areas. A senior official of the Ministry of Railways said that the line expansion will connect iron ores to steel production units and will play a crucial role in meeting the annual steel production target of 300 million tons. The project will cost around Rs 1,752 crore.
The 177-km Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar-Parbhani doubling project in Maharashtra will improve connectivity in the Marathwada region and provide an alternative route between Mumbai and Secunderabad. It will also connect the Jalna dry port and goods sheds at Dinagaon and Daulatabad, besides supporting the upcoming Aurangabad Industrial City.
Railway officials said the line doubling will facilitate the movement of 14.3 million tons of additional cargo from the region. The project includes the construction of 28 major and 161 minor bridges, and 29 underpasses.
Dheeraj Mishra is a Principal correspondent with The Indian Express, Business Bureau. He covers India's two key ministries- Ministry of Railways and Ministry of Road Transport & Highways. He frequently uses the Right to Information (RTI) Act for his stories, which have resulted in many impactful reports. ... Read More
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Print
3 minutes ago
- The Print
Malegaon blast probe politics will simmer till Maharashtra polls
A trial court in Mumbai gave its judgment on the case Thursday, acquitting all seven accused, including former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Pragya Singh Thakur, saying there was strong suspicion, but not enough evidence to convict them. And, the most unfortunate part is that nobody seems to be interested in finding out, least of all the government. An explosive went off during the holy month of Ramadan in Maharashtra's Malegaon in 2008. Six people died. Almost a hundred others were injured. It's been 17 years, but in the eyes of the judiciary, there are still no answers as to who was responsible for the attack. The court ordered compensation of Rs 2 lakh to the families of those who died in the attack, and Rs 50,000 for the families of those injured. But it is too little, too late. The Malegaon blast case has, after all, been a victim of politics, and justice or closure has been the biggest casualty. For this reason, the Malegaon blast verdict is ThePrint's 'Newsmaker of the Week.' 'Saffron terror' politics The Malegaon case has been in the public discourse for 17 years, more for the politics surrounding it than for any significant details regarding the investigation process. The probe in the immediate aftermath of the blasts, under the Maharashtra Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) and its former chief Hemant Karkare, had led to the arrests of a bunch of Hindutva activists, including Pragya Singh Thakur, as well as Lt Colonel Prasad Purohit, an Army officer. The accused were said to be linked to a Hindu fundamentalist group, Abhinav Bharat. India had seen a fair number of terror attacks across the country in 2008, raising questions on the efficiency of the home ministry under the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. The initial revelations in the Malegaon probe gave a political opportunity to the Congress to turn the narrative. The party raised red flags on terrorism allegedly sponsored by Hindutva organisations, with some senior leaders such as P Chidambaram, Digvijaya Singh, and Sushilkumar Shinde using the word 'saffron terror'. They blamed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) for allegedly encouraging such fringe Hindutva groups. These strong statements had at the time sparked a debate on how the term 'saffron terror' defames the entire Hindu religion and how terror should not be seen through the lens of any religious colour. The BJP and RSS, meanwhile, slammed the Congress for allegedly trying to appease the minorities. Karkare was killed in the 2008 Mumbai attacks. His death too became politically controversial as the Union Minority Affairs Minister AR Antulay, a Congressman from Maharashtra, suggested that there could be a larger controversy behind the IPS officer's death. Thursday's verdict came as vindication for the BJP's political narrative, with party leaders blaming the Congress for allegedly casting Hindus in a bad light, asking for an apology. It was ironic. The government's law enforcement agency had lost a case. It had failed to show sufficient evidence to get a conviction, despite having 17 years, over ten of which were under a BJP-led government at the Centre. And yet, those in power were celebrating. Also read: Fauja Singh's death shows Indian roads remain a national emergency—474 lives lost every day Opposition busy trying to get script right After the verdict, several Congress leaders asked if Pragya Singh Thakur and others are now acquitted, then who was behind the blast? However, the question was blunted by their more emphatic attempts at distancing the Congress from the term 'saffron terror'. Talking about 'saffron terror' in a Hindu-majority democracy had hurt the Congress even back then. In today's scenario, where the BJP has been working with every small spiritual and religious outfit on the ground to consolidate the Hindutva voter base, the consequences could be even worse. So, one after the other, leaders of the Congress tried to make all the right noises, loudly speaking about how they had never coined the term 'saffron terror,' how terror has no religion, and how Congress condemns all acts of terror. The question that should have been the loudest of all—who committed the crime—came out barely as a whimper. The Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) questioned the failure of the government's law enforcement agencies with two back-to-back acquittals in terror cases—first the 2006 Mumbai train blasts and now the 2008 Malegaon blast. However, it stopped short of asking or even suggesting that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) should appeal against the trial court's decision in a higher court. After all, back in 2008, when the Shiv Sena was still undivided under Bal Thackeray's leadership and was a BJP ally, it had openly supported the Malegaon blast accused. On one occasion, party workers had even showered flower petals over the accused outside a Nashik courtroom. Last month, after the Bombay High Court tore into the Maharashtra ATS over the 2006 Mumbai train blasts probe and acquitted all 12 accused, all of whom were Muslims, the Maharashtra government promptly appealed in the Supreme Court. Now that an NIA trial court has done the same in the Malegaon blast case, neither the government nor the agency has shown any urgency in appealing to a higher court. The NIA has said it will decide whether to appeal after studying the order. The political pandemonium will continue as Maharashtra gears up for urban and rural local body polls sometime next year. For the victims and their families, any closure still seems to be a long way off. (Edited by Ratan Priya)
New Indian Express
3 minutes ago
- New Indian Express
Strict quality norms stall black gram procurement in Thanjavur despite 2,500-tonne target
THANJAVUR: Despite setting a target of procuring 2,500 tonnes of black gram under the price support scheme (PSS), regulated markets in the district didn't procure a single kilogram of the pulse crop during the stipulated 90-day period that ended on June 29. While farmers blame the 'high' quality parameters for their harvest going unsold, officials suspect the poor quality seeds the former buy led to the situation. According to officials of the agriculture and farmers' welfare department, around 12,000 hectares in the district came under black gram cultivation during the rice-fallow season that commenced in January 2025. To help farmers avoid distress sales of their crop, which they commenced harvesting in April, the Thanjavur district marketing committee had made arrangements from April 1 to procure the pulse crop at the minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 74/kg at the regulated markets functioning at Thanjavur, Kumbakonam, Papanasam and Orathanadu. During the 90-day procurement period that ended on June 29, not a single kg of black gram, however, was procured under the PSS scheme which was implemented by the state agricultural marketing and agriculture business department on behalf of the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED). When contacted the officials overseeing the regulated markets said the quality parameters fixed by the NAFED are 'very high'.
Hans India
3 minutes ago
- Hans India
Minister distributes pensions
Kondapi: Social Welfare Minister Dr Dola Sree Bala Veeranjaneya Swamy announced that the state government, under the leadership of Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu, is steadfastly implementing public welfare and development programmes across the state, fulfilling election promises made during the campaign. Speaking at a programme in Chimata village of Marripudi mandal in Kondapi constituency on Friday, the minister distributed NTR Bharosa pensions to beneficiaries. He emphasised that the Chief Minister is systematically implementing each component of the promised 'Super Six' scheme. This is a government for the poor, declared the minister, highlighting significant expansions to existing welfare programmes. He said that social welfare pensions have been increased from Rs 3,000 to Rs 4,000 under the NTR Bharosa pension scheme. He announced that starting this month, 108206 additional spouse pensions are being distributed across the state, with 5174 beneficiaries in the district and 799 in Kondapi constituency alone. He announced that the Annadata Sukhibhava programme, which will be launched by the chief minister on Saturday, will credit Rs 7,000 directly to farmers' accounts, combining state and central government assistance.
