Two new railway lines in Odisha will be completed rapidly: Vaishnav

Bhubaneswar: Railways, Communications and IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnav on Friday said two new railway lines in the state will be fast-tracked to boost connectivity and economic activities.

The new lines to be constructed soon are Angul – Nayagarh Town via Narsinghpur, Kantilo and Khandapara and Digha-Jaleshwar (Chandaneshwar-Jaleshwar) project besides a chord line between Khurda Town – Kaipadar Road. “Final location survey (FLS) permission has been granted for the chord line between Angul-Nayagarh Town Line and Khurda Town-Kapadar Road. The approval process for Chandaneshwar-Jaleshwar line has been completed and work will start soon.
The Jaleshwar-Chandaneswar line will connect famous Shiv Peethas like Chandaneshwar Temple and Bhusandeshwar Temple to Jaleshwar station, boost regional socio-economic upliftment and provide connectivity to students, pilgrims, farmers and local traders of the region.
The much-needed connectivity to the hinterland of Jaleshwar and Bhograi blocks of Balasore districts will also benefit the fisheries sector and local agricultural producers. The project, sanctioned since 2010, was lagging due to lack of necessary budgetary provisions and delays in the land acquisition process.
Similarly, Angul-Nayagarh Town Line will provide connectivity to Kantilo Nilamadhab Temple and promote nature tourism by enhancing connectivity to unknown wildlife sanctuaries and reserve forests in the area besides facilitating smooth freight movement to coal and power plants.
The proposed new line will merge with the running Khurda-Balangir line at Nayagarh Town station and will extend from Khurda Town station to Kaipadar Road station in the Khurda Road Vizianagaram main line.