New Delhi/Tanakpur. Railway Minister Piyush Goyal gave the gift of Tanakpur-Delhi Purnagiri Jan Shatabdi Special Train to the people of Uttarakhand. After flagging off the train, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal addressed the ceremony through video conferencing and said that this was a long-standing demand of the regional people which has been fulfilled today.
With the operation of this train, a convenient means has become available to go for the darshan of Maa Purnagiri. At the same time, with the running of this train, the people of Uttarakhand have also got a convenient travel facility to go to Delhi. Along with this, employment opportunities will also increase due to promotion of regional tourism.
Railway Minister Piyush Goyal also mentioned several important railway projects related to Uttarakhand. He informed that the work of construction of Rishikesh-Karn Prayag (125.09 km) new line is in progress in Uttarakhand at a cost of Rs 4200 crore. At the same time, the work of doubling the Haridwar-Luxor section (27 km) has been completed. An average of Rs 672 crore per year was allocated in the year 2014-19 to strengthen the basic rail infrastructure in Uttarakhand, which is 259 percent more than the average budget allocation of Rs 187 crore per year from 2009-14.
In the year 2019-20, 903 crores were allocated for rail projects and safety works in Uttarakhand, which is 383 percent more than the average annual budget allocation of 187 crores from 2009-14. In the budget for the year 2020-21, 1780 crores were allocated for rail projects and safety works in Uttarakhand, which is 852 percent more than the average annual budget allocation of 187 crores from 2009-14.
Going further, an allocation of Rs 4432 crore has been made for the year 2021-22 which is more than 22 times the average allocation of Rs 187 crore per year from 2009-2014. With the completion of the ongoing railway projects in Uttarakhand, Uttarakhand will reach new horizons of development.
Goyal said that in the last few years, the Railways has done remarkable work in this area, under which the gauge conversion of Pilibhit-Tanakpur section was completed in the year 2017 and Tanakpur railway station was connected to the broad gauge line.
The section from Delhi to Pilibhit is electrified and the electrification work from Pilibhit to Tanakpur (62 km) has also been completed. After the inspection of the Railway Safety Commissioner, trains can be run directly from Tanakpur to Delhi with electric engines.
Union Education Minister Dr. Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ was present in the program through video link. Apart from MP Ajay Tamta, MP Ajay Bhatt, MP Anil Baluni, MLA Kailash Chandra Gahtori, MLA Pushkar Singh Dhami and MLA Puran Singh Fatryal, Member O. & B.D. from Railway Board Purnendu Mishra were also prominently present in the function organized in Tanakpur.
Additional General Manager, North Eastern Railway, Amit Kumar Agarwal said that from February 27, 2021, 05325 Tanakpur-Delhi Purnagiri Jan Shatabadi Special train will depart from Tanakpur at 11.25 hrs and reach Delhi at 21.35 hrs and 05326 Delhi-Tanakpur Purnagiri Jan Shatabadi Special train will depart from Delhi at 06.10 hrs and reach Tanakpur at 16.10 hrs.
A total of 12 LHB coaches will be installed in this train, including 02 generator-cum-luggage vans, 08 second class chair cars and 02 air-conditioned chair cars. Agrawal said that advanced passenger facilities have been provided at Tanakpur station. Divisional Railway Manager, Izzatnagar Ashutosh Pant expressed his gratitude and Senior Divisional Commercial Manager, Izzatnagar Neetu conducted the program.
Tags: Indian Railway news, Indian Railways, Piyush goyal, Uttarakhand Tourism
FIRST PUBLISHED : February 26, 2021, 19:14 IST