Former CM demands separate railway zone

Visakhapatnam, Aug 23 (UNI) Former Chief Minister and Visakhapatnam MP N Janardhana Reddy has urged Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav to exclude Waltair Division from East Coast Railway (ECR) and form a separate zone with Visakhapatnam as its headquarters.

Mr Reddy said injustice was done to Waltair - the highest revenue earning division - by including it in ECR with headquarters at Bbhubaneswar.

The Waltair Division had earned a savings of over Rs 2,250 crore during the last fiscal and it entitled to become a zonal headquarter, he said.

In a letter to Mr Reddy, Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Public Eenterprises V Santosh Mohan informed that the merger of Bharat Heavy Plate and Vessels (BHPV) with Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) had been finalised and the plan was sent to various ministries for approval by the competent authority.

The minister said in his letter that the revival project includes concessions from the Union government to the tune of Rs 515 crore in the form of waiver of loans and interest there as on march 31.

Infusion of funds by the Centre amounting to Rs 264 crore and concessions by the bankers worth Rs 113 crore, he added.

The BHEL was expected to invest Rs 275 crore in addition to concessions by the Andhra Pradesh Government, he said.

UNI