Daitari-Banspani Railway project to be completed in December

Bhubaneswar, May 29 (UNI) The 155-km Daitari-Bansapani rail link, considered to be one of the prestigious rail projects in the economic development of Orissa, will be ready by December this year With Rs 155.90 crore sanctioned for the project during 2006-07, the East Coast Railways (ECoR) had targeted to complete the rail link by the end of this year.

The Rs 590 crore project was scheduled to be completed by December, 2005.

ECoR General Manager N K Goel told newsmen here that almost 90 per cent of the earth work and bridges for the project had been completed, while the track and signaling works would be completed by the Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL).

The first section of the project from Bansapani to Jaroli was opened for goods traffic in November, 2000. Later goods traffic from Jaroli to Keonjhar (approximately 48 km) was commissioned during September, 2004.

Mr Goel said other major rail projects such as Lanjigarh- Junagarh, Khurda Road-Bolangir, Haridaspur-Paradeep, Sukinda Road- Angul and Talcher-Bimlagarh line had also been taken up but the work on these projects had slowed down due to problems in land acquisition.

He claimed that the ECoR occupied the first position in goods earning with Rs 3974.29 crore during 2005-06 and adjudged as the second best railways after the South East Central railways on account of operating ratio, which stood for 54.59 per cent, almost a rise in 11.6 per cent than the previous year.

Mr Goel said the ECoR had also received a major allotment of Rs 1077.2 crore during 2006-2007 of which Rs 819 crore was allotted for Orissa projects, almost double than what was sanctioned in 2005-2006.

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