Piyush Goyal announces 88 projects worth Rs 1,000 cr to make Railways 'future ready'

Minister of Railways Piyush Goyal, on Monday, via video conferencing, announced 88 railway projects worth Rs 1,000 crores, related to a series of infrastructure plans, passenger amenities and other facility improvements in Kerela, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Karnataka railway stations.

During the inauguration of the projects in Kerela, Goyal stressed on how important it was to provide the passengers with the basic amenities and improve the connectivity of the State, which he rightly called "a keeper of the Indian Heritage".

He further highlighted, "The budget being allocated to Kerela is continuously increasing year on year. We are committed to having a vibrant railway network across Kerela in the days and months to come. "

As per ANI, the project in Kerela includes the construction of Foot Over Bridges at Kollam, Kundara and Kochuvelli to enhance the mobility of the passengers and promote easy dispersal of the crowd at these stations with major footfalls.

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Lifts for differently-abled, old-aged and ailing passengers

The State of Madhya Pradesh, which was allocated Rs 7,700 crores for different railway projects in the budget 2020-2021, apart from various other benefits, witnessed the installation of three lifts in the Gwalior station for the convenience of differently-abled, old-aged and ailing passengers.

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Electrification of Ratlam-Chittorgarh rail section

Announcing the electrification of Ratlam-Chittorgarh rail section, the Ministry stated at present, trains are being run by diesel engine in this 189.64 km rail section, which takes extra time to change loco from Ratlam and after electrification, trains will run by electric loco which will eliminate extra time in changing locos and trains will run at a high speed without hindrance helping passengers and goods trains to reach their destination in shorter time.

Besides cutting down on the time, the conversion from diesel to electric traction will save diesel and in turn, save Rs 27.54 crores per year.

Meanwhile, Teegaon to Chichonda 3rd Ghat line project, which was categorised as "supercritical" has been completed and commissioned in December 2020.

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(Inputs from ANI)