Chandigarh-Punjab rail link to be completed in 2009

Chandigarh, Apr 5 (UNI) The Rs 577 crore Chandigarh-Ludhiana rail link will be completed within two and a half years to provide direct 112 km rail link between Punjab and its capital, Punjab Chief Secretary Ramesh Inder Singh said here today.

While presiding over a meeting of the Indian Railways officials, Mr Singh said that already commissioned rail link between Chandigarh and Morinda would be electrified in eight months to run high speed electric trains.

The Chief Secretary further informed that the state government would workout the modalities regarding land acquisition in Ropar district to hand over the same to Railways authority within one month to expedite the work of construction of 51 km Morinda-Sahnewal rail line.

Mr Singh assured the Railways officials that notification under Land Acquisition Act would also be issued for Fategarh Sahib within 15 days.

He also informed that 45 km Chandigarh-Morinda rail stretch joining Chandigarh, Mohali, Kharar, New Morinda and Morinda Stations was fully operational.

UNI