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Bhubaneswar: The state government will invest Rs 80 crore in the 2015-16 fiscal in the long-awaited Khurda-Bolangir rail link project that is to be completed in six years with an investment of Rs 2,350 crore.
“As per the MoU signed between the Railway Ministry and Orissa government,
“The state is required to invest Rs 80 crore for the project in the current fiscal, according to the MoU signed between the railway ministry and the Orissa government,” said an official of the transport department. “While Rs 10 crore will be spent on construction work, Rs 70 crore will be spent to acquire private land required for the project in this fiscal,” said the official.
Private land of 700 acres is to be acquired by 2015-16 end, sources said.
The Railways will also spend Rs 10 crore towards construction work under the project this fiscal, said an official. The total expenditure under the project in 2015-16 would thus be Rs 90 crore, he said.
The state government had November 16 asked Railway officials to submit a proposal for forest diversion work under the Khurda-Bolangir railway project. Besides, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, during his bi-monthly review of the rail project, had asked the revenue department and the commerce and transport department to work in coordination to complete the process of land acquisition. Patnaik had also asked the general manager of East Coast Railway (ECoR) to ensure initiation of the project work from Bolangir side at the earliest.
The state government has identified land for project work up to 19 km and has paid Rs 8 crore to ECoR in this regard, sources said. The 19-km railway work from Bolangir would begin in December, sources said.
Out of a total of 289 km under the project, work has been completed on a stretch of 41.5 km up to Rajsunakhala from Khurda. At present two up and down passenger trains are plying from Khurda to Rajsunakhala. Work on the stretch up to Bolagarh would be completed by June 2016, while the work on the stretch up to Nayagarh will end by March 2017. Work is also underway on the Daspalla-Bolangir track under the project.
