Work on 103-km Kolhapur-Vaibhavwadi section of Konkan Railway to begin soon: Govt

Work on the 103-kilometre Kolhapur-Vaibhavwadi section of Konkan Railway will begin soon, a line which would link the coastal region of Maharashtra with the western area of the state and help development of ports and harbours, the commerce ministry today said.

This decision regarding this was taken at a review meeting of Konkan Railway chaired by Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu here yesterday.

In the meeting, Prabhu stated that the construction of this line will facilitate movement of petroleum from the world's largest integrated refinery and petrochemical complexes being built near Vaibhavwadi in Ratnagiri district.

The ministry said that the USD 40-billion mega refinery is being built by IOC, BPCL and HPCL; and is expected to be commissioned by 2022.

"Kolhapur-Vaibhavwadi line will facilitate movement of petroleum and petrochemicals from the refinery to the coast. The future economic growth of Maharashtra depends on connectivity of its coastal areas with the rest of the state and the country," the ministry statement said quoting Prabhu.

Indian Railways will bear 50 per cent of the cost and rest will be borne by the state government.

The meeting was attended by the Chairman, Railway Board, CMD, Konkan Railway and other senior officials.