Rajya Sabha BJD member Narendra Kumar Swain recently raised the issue of introducing a new train after Buxi Jagabandhu from Puri to Mumbai in Parliament.
It would be a glowing tribute to the departed Paika leader, who had waged a relentless struggle in 1817 against the Britishers, he said.
A large number of people from Odisha travel to Mumbai, Pune and different places of Maharashtra for business, service, education, healthcare and tourism purposes. They mostly depend on the Railways for their journey. A large number of people from Maharashtra also visit the holy city of Puri and other places of Odisha regularly.
Swain had also mentioned this earlier in a letter to the Union Railways Minister. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik also had requested for introduction of the train to be named after the hallowed memory of the all time great freedom fighter.
The Chief Minister had requested the Union Railway Minister to increase the frequency of the lokamanya Tilak Express from Bhubaneswar to Mumbai from three times in a week to daily for convenience of people of both the States.
MP Swain further wanted to know if a new railway line from Puri to Konark has been sanctione since the Government of Odisha has offered to sanction 50 per cent of land cost and 50 per cent of construction cost to the Railways. He said that despite the State’s offer to the Railways, no confirmation has been received as yet. He sought to know the reason there of. Swain also questioned the Railway Minister if a probable date has been fixed when the Railways would enter into a MoU with Government of Odisha for the project.
On replying to the query of Swain, Minister of State for Railways Rajen Gohain admitted that a proposal to the effect has been received from the Chief Minister of Odisha. However, since land required for the project has not been offered by the State Government, the latter has been requested to provide land free of cost. No reply has been received from the Odisha Government in this regard, the Minister said. Therefore, no target date for signing of MoU has been fixed, the Minister informed