Himachal Chief Minister Jairam Thakur on Wednesday called on Union Minister for Railways Piyush Goel at New Delhi and discussed about expansion of rail network in Himachal Pradesh.
Assuring all possible support to the state, a statement quoting Goel said that speed and frequency of trains running on Kalka- Shimla railway line will be increased and efforts would be made to decrease the duration of journey from existing five hours to merely three hours.
The Railway Minister directed the officers of the Ministry to work upon this immediately and added that he would like to celebrate thirty long years of his association with Jai Ram Thakur with this gift very soon. Goel said that speed of the Jogindernagar-Pathankot train would also be increased in similar manner.
The Chief Minister thanked the Union Minister and said that this would ease the traffic on the Kalka-Shimla highway and more tourists would prefer to travel by train while enjoying the scenic beauty.
Thakur also requested for speedy action on Bhanupali-Bilaspur and Una-Hamirpur railway lines and improving facilities in various railway stations on Kalka-Shimla route and developing of a multi-storeyed parking near Shimla railway station with all kinds of facilities.
The Union Minister said that all possible assistance would be provided and added that Jogindernagar-Pathankot narrow gauge railway line will also be strengthened. He urged the state government to explore the possibilities of providing land for Una-Hamirpur railway line.
He said that tenders shall be finalized for multi-storeyed parking and commercial complex on the railway land which will be helpful in easing traffic congestion in Shimla. Additional Chief Secretaries Shrikant Baldi and Manisha Nanda, senior officers of Ministry of Railways, amongst others were present in the meeting.