The cabinet committee on economic affairs yesterday cleared eight new line and two gauge conversion projects, worth an aggregate Rs 4,711.82 crore. The decision is aimed at linking several pilgrim centres and providing new routes in parts of Manipur and Madhya Pradesh.
The cleared projects include the 123.84 km Diphu-Karong link, expected to cost Rs 1,604.08 crore, which will connect Manipur's capital, Imphal, with other parts of the state.
The CCEA also approved a proposal for a new 541 km line in the backward Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh. This project, connecting Lalitpur with Satna, Rewa-Sidhi-Singrauli and Mahoba-Khajuraho, will cost Rs 974.98 crore.
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In Kerala, a new line project connecting Angamali, Erumeli and the pilgrim centre of Sabarimala was cleared. This 145.6 crore project will cost Rs 645.87 crores.
Three railway projects cleared in Bihar. They include a new line connecting Ranchi to Koderma via Hazaribagh and Barkakhana has also been approved. The Rs 491.20 crore project will result in a new route of 189 km in length. Another 104 km link between Koderma and Giridih in Bihar costing Rs 137.53 crores also got the green signal.
Another project is the gauge conversion of the Jaynagar-Darbhanga-Narkatiaganj line which will improve rail infrastructure in backward region in North Bihar. The conversion cost of the 256 km line is Rs 208.16 crores.
Another linkage between Chandigarh and Ludhiana was approved yesterday to improve connectivity to the industrial town of Mohali and the pilgrim centre of Anandpur Sahib in Punjab. The 112 km route costing Rs 248.43 crores will also provide an alternate route between Ambala and Ludhiana.
CCEA also cleared the 76 km Macheria-Nalgonda new line project in Andhra Pradesh which will cost Rs 125 crores. A 161.5 km gauge conversion project connecting Madurai and the pilgrim centre of Rameshwaram and costing Rs 193.98 crores was also approved.
A new Rs 52.10 km line between Dharmavaram and Penukonda via the pilgrim centre of Puttaparthi will be laid at a cost of Rs 82.50 crores, the CCEA has decided.