To expedite the much-awaited process of laying railway tracks along the Rishikesh-Karnprayag route in the hills, Garhwal MP and former Chief Minister Maj Gen Bhuwan Chandra Khanduri met the senior railway officers in Delhi on Tuesday.
It is learnt that the former CM has taken stock of the things as they stand in the micro and macro details about the railway project. Notably, he had already talked to the railway minister Suresh Prabhu and had appealed to him to start things promptly regarding laying of railway tracks on the proposed route. It is learnt that the Garhwal MP had apprised the officials of what transpired during his meeting with the rail minister.
Sources said, Maj Gen Khanduri has sought to understand the nitty gritty of the project and about where things stand now.
Mention worthy, the track-laying work of Rishikesh Karnprayag railway project has been pending for a long time. The issue is alive in the political realm, though on the ground level, things are moving at a snail’s pace.
Notably, 85 percent of the tracks to be laid would stretch through the hills. It would be a 125 kilometer long railway line. Its technical survey has been made. It would have 17 tunnels and the tracks would pass through 105 kilometers through the tunnels. The tunnel connecting Devprayag with Maletha would be the longest among the 17 to be laid and its length would be 15 kilometer.
It would be a broad gauge single track and each station would have another track to let other trains coming from opposite side pass. Initially, only four trains would run on the route. However, the tracks would have capacity to 16-19 trains a day.
Gen Khanduri is learnt to have stressed on passengers’ safety, environment and the state of the art technique during his deliberations with the railway officials. Sources said that the officials have apprised him of the latest technology and modern security apparatus to be installed to ensure safety and security of the passengers and environment as well.
Currently, the project is being scrutinized on environmental assessment and once they get the green signal the work would begin in full swing. Things would be completed in the next 8-10 years.
To make the project a successful one, the railway has taken service of a world class tunneling technology and bridge experts as well. Gen Khanduri asked the officials to work with full dedication to speed things up. Fund crunch would be no hindrance, he assured the officials.
Among others present at the meeting were executive director (project monitoring) Anjum Parvaiz, Bhanu Prakash, General Manageer Project-1 and JS Mahrok, executive officer (project--II) were present.