Not Just Bullet Train, Centre Has Big Railway Development Plans For Bengal

A key approval for 61 railway projects is expected to reshape the railway network in West Bengal, an eastern state that serves as a crucial gateway to the northeast. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Friday held a key meeting with Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari at the state secretariat.

Sources indicate that various railway projects were discussed during the meeting. Vaishnaw and Adhikari subsequently held a press conference, during which the railway minister announced 538 new flyovers and underpasses in Bengal.

He said that 102 'Amrit Bharat' stations will also be developed in West Bengal in the days to come. Besides, Kolkata Metro will get 60 new rakes within five years.

The much-awaited bullet train service will also be launched between Siliguri and Delhi.

"This bullet train will start from New Delhi and will reach Siliguri in North Bengal via Lucknow, Varanasi, and Patna. The distance will be covered in just six hours. Apart from that, 60 new train services will be introduced in the state in the next five years," the railway minister added.

A dedicated east-west freight corridor has also been announced to connect Dankuni in Bengal with Surat in Gujarat.

Projects worth Rs 1 lakh crore will be undertaken for Bengal, the railway minister said, stating that the funds are ready.

Vaishnaw said the previous Trinamool government went to the High Court and the Supreme Court to stall railway projects to deprive the people of Bengal of development. "However, you will now be able to work freely and wholeheartedly. The previous government did not allow you to work," the minister told reporters at Nabanna.

Echoing him, Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said that during the Trinamool regime, centre-state relations had virtually turned into a state of conflict and caused many projects to stall. "But the people of West Bengal will now fully reap the benefits of a 'double-engine' government. Approval has already been granted for 61 railway projects," he said.

The chief minister has also directed the district magistrates to cooperate with the Railway Board for railway network expansion and easing of the land acquisition process.