Lok Sabha Question No. 428 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-11-27
Subject: New Railway Line Projects
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Shri Ashok Kumar Rawat, Shri Ashish Dubey, Dr. Hemant Vishnu Savara, Shri Chavda Vinod Lakhamshi, Shri Mukeshkumar Chandrakaant Dalal, Shri Manish Jaiswal, Smt. Shobhanaben Mahendrasinh Baraiya, Shri Pradeep Kumar Singh, Smt. Himadri Singh, Shri Vijay Baghel, Shri Parbhubhai Nagarbhai Vasava, Shri Suresh Kumar Kashyap, Shri Jaswantsinh Sumanbhai Bhabhor, Shri Mukesh Rajput, Smt. Smita Uday Wagh, Shri Vishnu Dayal Ram, Shri Balabhadra Majhi, Smt. Aparajita Sarangi, Shri Dineshbhai Makwana, Shri Tejasvi Surya, Shri Chandra Prakash Joshi

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 428

## TO BE ANSWERED ON 27.11.2024

## NEW RAILWAY LINE PROJECTS

†428. Shri Tejasvi Surya:

Shri Chavda Vinod Lakhamshi:

Dr. Hemant Vishnu Savara:

Shri Vijay Baghel:

Shri Vishnu Dayal Ram:

Shri Pradeep Kumar Singh:

Shri Mukeshkumar Chandrakaant Dalal:

Shri Jaswantsinh Sumanbhai Bhabhor:

Smt. Smita Uday Wagh:

Smt. Himadri Singh:

- Shri Dineshbhai Makwana:

Shri Parbhubhai Nagarbhai Vasava:

Shri Manish Jaiswal:

Shri Suresh Kumar Kashyap:

Smt. Aparajita Sarangi:

- Shri Chandra Prakash Joshi:

Shri Mukesh Rajput:

Shri Ashish Dubey:

Smt. Shobhanaben Mahendrasinh Baraiya:

Shri Ashok Kumar Rawat:

Shri Balabhadra Majhi:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a) the  specific  steps  undertaken  by  the  Government  to  ensure that new railway line projects will enhance connectivity in the aspirational districts across the country especially in Nabarangpur, Malkangiri in Odisha, Himachal Pradesh, Misrikh and its surrounding districts in Uttar Pradesh and Dahod;
- (b) the  number  of  aspirational  districts  connected  with  Railway Projects in Gujarat during the period from 2014 to 2024 and the amount of budget increased thereon;
- (c) the Government plans to monitor and evaluate the environmental impact of these new railway projects, particularly in terms of  reducing  CO2  emissions  and oil imports,  as  well  as  their  contribution  to  achieving  India's climate goals;
- (d) the  details  of  the  new  and  running  railway  line  projects particularly in Palghor district of Maharashtra, major cities like Hazaribag-Ramgarh in Jharkhand and Rajasthan;
- (e) the  steps  taken  by  the  Government  to  increase  the  current speed of trains, division-wise; and
- (f) the delay caused per month in the operation of trains, division wise  and  the  steps  taken  by  the  Government  to  improve  the same?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

(a) to (f): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

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## STATEMENT  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a)  TO  (f)  OF

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 428 BY

SHRI TEJASVI SURYA: SHRI CHAVDA VINOD LAKHAMSHI: DR. HEMANT VISHNU SAVARA: SHRI VIJAY BAGHEL: SHRI VISHNU DAYAL RAM: SHRI PRADEEP KUMAR SINGH: SHRI MUKESHKUMAR CHANDRAKAANT DALAL: SHRI JASWANTSINH SUMANBHAI BHABHOR: SMT. SMITA UDAY WAGH: SMT. HIMADRI SINGH: SHRI DINESHBHAI MAKWANA: SHRI PARBHUBHAI NAGARBHAI VASAVA: SHRI MANISH JAISWAL: SHRI SURESH KUMAR KASHYAP: SMT. APARAJITA SARANGI: SHRI CHANDRA PRAKASH JOSHI: SHRI MUKESH RAJPUT: SHRI ASHISH DUBEY: SMT. SHOBHANABEN MAHENDRASINH BARAIYA: SHRI ASHOK KUMAR RAWAT:

SHRI BALABHADRA MAJHI:

TO BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 27.11.2024 REGARDING NEW RAILWAY LINE PROJECTS

(a) ,(b) & (d): The Railway projects are sanctioned Zonal Railway wise  and  not  State  wise/UT  wise/district  wise  as  the  Railways' projects may span across state boundaries.

Railway  Infrastructure Projects are taken  up  on  the basis of remunerativeness, last mile connectivity, missing links and alternate routes, augmentation of congested/saturated lines, socioeconomic considerations including connectivity to aspirational districts across the country, places of strategic  importance,  border ..P/2

areas  etc.  depending  upon  liabilities  of  ongoing  projects,  overall availability of funds and competing demands.

As on 01.04.2024, across Indian Railways, 187 New line projects of total  length  20,199  Km,  costing  approx. 4.16  lakh  crore  are  in planning/approval/construction stage, out of which 2,855 Km length has  been  commissioned  and  an  expenditure  of  approx. 1.6  lakh crore has been incurred upto March, 2024.

Zone-wise/year-wise  details  of  all  Railway  Projects  including  cost, expenditure  and  outlay  are  made  available  in  public  domain  on Indian Railways website.

## GUJARAT

Railway infrastructural Projects in the State of Gujarat are covered by North Western (NW) Railway and Western Railway (WR) Zone of Indian Railways.

49 No. Surveys (New line, Gauge Conversion and Doubling) of total length 3,791 km falling fully partly in the state of Gujarat including Dahod  have  been  sanctioned  in  the  last  three  years  and  current year.

32 km section in Dahod - Indore New Line project (205 km) has been commissioned and an expenditure 1,587  Crore  has  been  incurred upto 31.03.2024. Works has been taken up in the balance section.

As on 01.04.24, 42 projects (06 New Line, 22 Gauge Conversion and 14 Doubling) of total length 2,948 Km costing 30,826 crore falling fully/partly  in  Gujarat  are  in  planning/approval/construction  stage, out  of  which  825  Km  length  has  been  commissioned  and  an expenditure of  9,335 Crore has been incurred upto March, 2024.

Average  Budget  allocation  for  Infrastructure  projects  and  safety works, falling fully/ partly in Gujarat is as under:

| Period   | Average Outlay   | Increase w.r.t. average allocation of 2009-14   |
|----------|------------------|-------------------------------------------------|
| 2009-14  | 589 crore/year   | -                                               |
| 2024-25  | 8,743 Cr.        | About 14.84 times                               |

Commissioning of sections (New Line, Gauge  Conversion and Doubling)  falling  fully/partly  in  the  State  of  Gujarat  during  2009-14 and 2014-2024 is as under:

| Period   | Total Commissioning   | Average Commissioning   | Increase w.r.t. average commissioning during 2009-14   |
|----------|-----------------------|-------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------|
| 2009-14  | 660 km                | 132 km/year             | -                                                      |
| 2014-24  | 2,244 km              | 224 km/year             | 1.69 times                                             |

During  financial  year  2023-24,  total  567  km  of  sections  has  been commissioned in Gujarat.

## RAJASTHAN

Railway projects in Rajasthan are covered by North Western Railway (NWR), North Central Railway (NCR), Northern Railway (NR), Western Railway (WR) zone of Indian Railways.

55  No.  Surveys  (New  line  and  Doubling)  of  total  length  4,944  km falling fully partly in the state of Rajasthan have been sanctioned in the last three years and current year.

As on 01.04.2024, 32 Projects (15 New Lines, 5 Gauge Conversion and 12 Doubling) of a total length of 4,191 km, costing  51,814 crore, falling fully/partly in Rajasthan are in planning/approval/construction stage, out of which 1,183 Km length has been commissioned and an expenditure of  14,786 crore has been incurred upto March, 2024.

Average  Budget  allocation  for  Infrastructure  projects  and  safety works, falling fully/ partly in Rajasthan is as under:

| Period   | Average Outlay   | Increase w.r.t. average   |
|----------|------------------|---------------------------|
| 2009-14  | 682 crore/year   | -                         |
| 2024-25  | 9,959 Crore      | About 14.6 times          |

Commissioning of sections (New Line, Gauge  Conversion and Doubling) falling fully/partly in the State of Rajasthan during 2009-14 and 2014-2024 is as under:

| Period   | Total Commissioning   | Average Commissioning   | Increase w.r.t. average commissioning during 2009-14   |
|----------|-----------------------|-------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------|
| 2009-14  | 798 km                | 159.6 km/year           |                                                        |
| 2014-24  | 3,742 km              | 374.2 km/year           | Around 2.34 times                                      |

## JHARKHAND

Railway  infrastructural  Projects  in  the  State  of  Jharkhand  are covered  by  East  Central  Railway  (ECR),  Eastern  Railway  (ER)  and South Eastern Railway (SER) Zone of Indian Railways.

84  No.  Surveys  (New  line  and  Doubling)  of  total  length  3,323  km falling  fully  partly  in  the  state  of  Jharkhand  including  HazaribagRamgarh have been sanctioned in the last three years and current year.

As on 01.04.2024, 32 projects (11 New Lines, 01 Gauge Conversions and 20 Doubling), of total length of 3,070 Km, costing 52,885 crore, falling fully/partly in the State of Jharkhand are in planning/approval/construction  stage,  out  of  which  744  Km  length has  been  commissioned  and  an  expenditure  of 15,986  crore  has been incurred upto March'24.

Average  Budget  allocation  for  Infrastructure  projects  and  safety works, falling fully/ partly in Jharkhand is as under:

| Period   | Average Outlay   | Increase w.r.t. average allocation of 2009-14   |
|----------|------------------|-------------------------------------------------|
| 2009-14  | 457 crore/year   | -                                               |
| 2024-25  | 7,302 Crore      | About 15.98 times                               |

Commissioning of sections (New Line, Gauge  Conversion and Doubling) falling fully/partly in the State of Jharkhand during 2009-14 and 2014-2024 is as under:

| Period   | Total Commissioning   | Average Commissioning   | Increase w.r.t. average commissioning during 2009-14   |
|----------|-----------------------|-------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------|
| 2009-14  | 287 km                | 57.4 km/year            |                                                        |
| 2014-24  | 1,218 km              | 121.8 km/year           | About 2.12 times                                       |

During  financial  year  2023-24,  total  124  km  of  sections  has  been commissioned in Jharkhand.

## MAHARASHTRA

Railway  infrastructure  projects  falling  fully/partly  in  the  State  of Maharashtra  are  covered  under  Central  Railway,  South  Central Railway,  South  East  Central  Railway,  South  Western  Railway  and Western Railway Zones of Indian Railways.

91 No. Surveys (New line, Gauge Conversion and Doubling) of total length  7,458  km  falling  fully/partly  in  the  state  of  Maharashtra including Palghor have been sanctioned in the last three years and current year.

As on 01.04.2024, 41 projects (16 New Lines, 02 Gauge Conversions and 23 Doubling), of total length of 5,877 Km, costing  81,580   crore falling fully/partly in Maharashtra are in planning/approval/ construction stage, out of which 1,926 km  length has been commissioned  and  an  expenditure  of 31,236 crore has  been incurred upto March, 2024.

Average  Budget  allocation  for  Infrastructure  projects  and  safety works, falling fully/ partly in Maharashtra is as under:

| Period   | Average Outlay   | Increase w.r.t. average allocation of 2009-14   |
|----------|------------------|-------------------------------------------------|
| 2009-14  | 1171 crore/year  | -                                               |
| 2024-25  | 15,940 Crore.    | About 13.61 times                               |

Commissioning of sections (New Line, Gauge  Conversion and Doubling) falling fully/partly in the State of Maharashtra during 200914 and 2014-2024 is as under:

| Period   | Total Commissioning   | Average Commissioning   | Increase w.r.t. average commissioning during 2009-14   |
|----------|-----------------------|-------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------|
| 2009-14  | 292 km                | 58.4 km/year            | -                                                      |
| 2014-24  | 1,830 km              | 183 km/year             | About 3 times                                          |

During  financial  year  2023-24,  total  358  km  of  sections  has  been commissioned in Maharashtra.

## ODISHA

Railway  Infrastructure  projects  falling  fully/partly  in  Odisha  are covered  by  East  Coast  Railway,  South  Eastern  Railway  and  South East Central Railway zones of Indian Railway.

90  No.  Surveys  (New  line  and  Doubling)  of  total  length  5,598  km falling  fully  partly  in  the  state  of  Odisha  including  Malkangiri, Nabrangpur have been sanctioned in the last three years and current year.

As on 01.04.2024, 40 Projects (13 New Lines, 1 Gauge Conversion and  26  Doubling)  of  total  length  4,017  Km,  costing  ₹54,434  crore, falling  fully/partly  in  Odisha  are  in  planning/approval/construction stage, out of which, 1,100 Km length has been commissioned and an expenditure of ₹22,833 crore has been incurred upto March, 2024.

Recently,  the  following  New  Line  projects  falling  fully/partly  in Odisha have been sanctioned:

Puri - Konark (32.02 Km), Gunupur-Therubali (73.62 Km), MalkangiriPandurangapuram  via  Bhadrachalam  (173.61  Km),  BadampaharKendujhargarh    (82.06 Km),   Junagarh -  Nabarangpur  (116.21 Km), ..P/9

Buramara-Chakulia (59.96 Km), Bangriposi-Gorumahisani (85.6 Km), Bargad  Road-  Nawapara  Road  (138.32  Km),  Sardega  -  Bhalumuda (37.24 Km).

Average  Annual  Budget  allocation  for  Infrastructure  and  safety works, falling fully/partly in the State of Odisha is as under:-

| Year    | Budget Outlay   | Increase w.r.t. average annual allocation of 2009-14   |
|---------|-----------------|--------------------------------------------------------|
| 2009-14 | 838 Cr./Year    | -                                                      |
| 2024-25 | 10,586 Cr.      | 12.6 times                                             |

Commissioning of sections (New Line, Gauge  Conversion and Doubling)  falling  fully/partly  in  the  State  of  Odisha  during  2009-14 and 2014-2024 is as under:

| Period   | Total length Commissioned   | Commissioning per year   | Increase commissioning compared to commissioning   | in as average   |
|----------|-----------------------------|--------------------------|----------------------------------------------------|-----------------|
| 2009-14  |                             | 53.4 Km                  | 2009-14                                            |                 |
|          |                             |                          |                                                    | during          |
|          | 267 Km                      |                          |                                                    |                 |
|          |                             |                          | -                                                  |                 |
|          |                             | 182.7 Km                 | About 3.5                                          | times           |
| 2014-24  | 1,827 Km                    |                          |                                                    |                 |

During  financial  year  2023-24,  total  243  km  of  sections  has  been commissioned in Odisha.

## Uttar Pradesh

Railway projects in Uttar Pradesh are covered by Northern Railway, North Central Railway, North Eastern Railway, East Central Railway and West Central Railway zones of Indian Railways.

92  No.  Surveys  (New  line  and  Doubling)  of  total  length  5,310  km falling  fully  partly  in  the  state  of  Uttar  Pradesh  including  Misrikh have been sanctioned in the last three years and current year.

As  on  01.04.2024,  in  Uttar  Pradesh,  68  Railway  projects  (16  New Line, 03 Gauge Conversion and 49 Doubling), of total length of 5,874 km  costing  ₹92,001  crore  falling  fully/partly  in  the  State,  are  at various stages of planning and implementation, out of which 1,313 km length  has  been  commissioned  and  an  expenditure  of  ₹28,366 crore has been incurred upto March 2024.

Average  Annual  Budget  allocation  for  Infrastructure  and  safety works, falling fully/partly in the State of Uttar Pradesh is as under:-

| Period   | Average Outlay    | Increase w.r.t. to average allocation during 2009-14   |
|----------|-------------------|--------------------------------------------------------|
| 2009-14  | 1,109 crore/year  | -                                                      |
| 2024-25  | 19,848 crore/year | 17.89 times                                            |

Commissioning of sections (New Line, Gauge  Conversion and Doubling)  falling  fully/partly  in  the  State  of  Uttar  Pradesh  during 2009-14 and 2014-2024 is as under:

| Period   | Total Track Commissioned   | Average Track Commissioned   | Increase w.r.t. average commissioning during 2009-14   |
|----------|----------------------------|------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------|
| 2009-14  | 996 Km                     | 199.2 km/year                | -                                                      |
| 2014-24  | 4,902 Km                   | 490.2 km/year                | 2.46 times                                             |

During financial year 2023-24, total 1,752 km of sections has been commissioned in Uttar Pradesh.

## Himachal Pradesh

Railway  infrastructural  Projects  in  the  State  of  Himachal  Pradesh are covered by Northern Railway (NR) Zone of Indian Railways.

05 No. Surveys (New line and Gauge Conversion) of total length 441 km falling  fully  partly  in  the  state  of  Himachal  Pradesh  have  been sanctioned in the last three years and current year.

As  on  01.04.2024,  04  New  line  of  total  length  255  km,  costing 13,168 crore, falling fully/partly in the state of Himachal Pradesh are in  planning/approval/construction stage, out of which, 61 km length has been commissioned and an expenditure of  6,225 crore has been incurred upto March, 2024.

Average  Budget  allocation  for  Infrastructure  projects  and  safety works, falling fully/ partly in Himachal Pradesh is as under:

| Period   | Average Outlay   | Increase w.r.t. to average allocation during 2009-14   |
|----------|------------------|--------------------------------------------------------|
| 2009-14  | 108 crore/year   | -                                                      |
| 2024-25  | 2,698 Crore      | About 25 times                                         |

(c):  Railway  is  the  most  environment  friendly  and  energy  efficient mode of  transportation.  Cost  of  transportation  by  rail  is  less  than half the cost of transportation  by  road.   The  expansion  of  railway ..P/12

network  and  capacity  enhancement  projects  contributes  towards achievement of climate goals and reducing logistics cost of transportation. In several studies it has been established that CO2 emissions by rail transportation is several times lower as compared to that with road. Thus, expansion of rail network invariably helps in reducing the carbon footprint of country.

The focus of Indian Railways is to lower dependence on the fossil fuels and reduce oil imports by increased use of renewable energy. In this endeavor, about 366 Mega  Watt  (MW)  of  Solar  Plants  (both Roof tops and land) and about 103 MW of Wind Power Plants have been commissioned till October'2024 over Indian Railways.

(e) and (f): Average speed of passenger carrying trains is dependent on  factors  like  type  of  coaching  stock,  traction  used,  Maximum Permissible  Speeds,  Speed  restrictions,  Gradients  and  curves,  line capacity  utilization  of  the  sections  and  stoppages  enroute.  In  its constant endeavour to speed up train services,  Indian Railways(IR) is  up-gradating  the  coaching  stock  by  proliferating  LHB  coaches, introducing Vande Bharat, Amirt Bharat, Namo Rapid Rail  services etc.  To  increase  speed  of  trains,  various  routes  are  identified  in planned manner every year and taken up accordingly. Raising speed to  130  kmph  is  a  continuous  and  ongoing  process.  Till,  date sectional  speed  has  been  raised  to  130  kmph  on  approximately 11,000 route kilometers  in  Indian  Railways.  Further,  with  a  view,

inter  alia,  to  speed  up  trains,  IR  also  undertook  rationalization  of Time-Table, in a scientific manner with the assistance of IIT-Bombay during 2020-21.

IR,  makes  all  efforts  to  run  trains  as  per  their  schedule  and punctually. However, at times, trains do get delayed under unavoidable circumstances such as emergency  safety related works, dislocation due to natural calamities, bad weather, accidents, law & order problems etc. Root cause analysis is being done  on  a  daily  basis  at  divisional  and  Zonal  level  regarding  the failures  affecting  punctual  running  of  trains,  and  based  on  the analysis,  immediate  corrective  action  is  taken.  This  is  an  ongoing process. During April-24 to October-2024, the average punctuality of Mail/Express services of all divisions of IR is approximately 79%.

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