Lok Sabha Question No. 3805 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-12-18
Subject: Pending Projects in North-Eastern Railway
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Dr. Alok Kumar Suman

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3805 TO BE ANSWERED ON 18.12.2024

## PENDING PROJECTS IN NORTH-EASTERN RAILWAY

3805. DR. ALOK KUMAR SUMAN:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of the Railway Projects/proposals of North-Eastern Railway lying pending in Railway Board;
- (b) the details of the said projects likely to be completed;
- (c) whether the projects/proposals of Thawe Station are pending in Railway Board, if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether proposals/projects pertaining to running of trains from said junction are pending in Railway Board since long, if so, the reasons therefor; and
- (e) whether these projects/proposals are deliberately being delayed  to  give  benefit  to  the  large  number  of  private  bus operators from this area, if so, the details of the action taken in this regard?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

## (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

(a) to (e): Proposals/requests/suggestions/representations,  both  formal and informal for Railway projects/Works across the country are received on  the  basis  of  demands  raised  by  State  Governments,  Members of Contd…2

Parliament, Ministries of Central Government, elected representatives,  Railways'  own  requirements,  organizations/rail  users etc. at various levels including Railway Board, Zonal Railways, Division Office  etc.  As  receipt  of  such  proposals/complaints/suggestions  is  a continuous  and  dynamic  process,  centralized  compendium  of  such requests is not maintained. However, these are examined and action as found feasible and justified is taken from time to time.

To augment and increase line capacity of rail network situated in North Eastern  Railway,  as  on  01.04.2024,  total  20  Railway  infrastructure projects (10 New Line, 02 Gauge Conversion and 08 Doubling), of total length of 1,695 Km, costing ₹24,288 crore of North Eastern Railway are at various stages of planning and implementation. Out of these 366 Km length has been commissioned and an expenditure of ₹9,310 crore has been incurred upto March, 2024. The status of work is summarized as under:-

| Plan Head               |   No. of projects |   Total Length (in Km) | Length Commissioned (in Km)   |   Expenditure upto March 2024 (₹ in Cr. ) |
|-------------------------|-------------------|------------------------|-------------------------------|-------------------------------------------|
| New Line                |                10 |                    811 | 48                            |                                      3066 |
| Gauge Conversion        |                 2 |                    250 | -                             |                                         8 |
| Doubling /Multitracking |                 8 |                    634 | 318                           |                                      6236 |
| Total                   |                20 |                   1695 | 366                           |                                      9310 |

Total 43 Nos. of surveys (6 New Line and 37 Doubling), of total length of 1710 Km in North Eastern Railway, have been sanctioned during last three  years  (2021-2022,  2022-2023,  2023-2024)  and  current  Financial Year (2024-2025).

Contd…3

Thawe Junction is already connected with existing railway network by Siwan-Hathua-Thawe-Tamkuhi  Road  railway  line.  However,  to  further improve  the  mobility,  1.1  Km  long  Thawe  bypass  line  connecting Gopalganj and Sasamusa railway stations has been sanctioned.

The completion of any Railway project depends on various factors like quick  land  acquisition  by  State  Government,  forest  clearance  by officials  of  forest  department,  deposition  of  cost  share  by  State Government  in  cost  sharing  projects,  priority  of  projects,  shifting  of infringing  utilities,    statutory    clearances    from    various    authorities, geological and topographical conditions of area, law and order situation in the area of project(s) site, number of working months  in  a year for particular project site due to climatic conditions etc.

Various  steps  taken  by  the  Government  for  speedy  approval  and implementation of Railway projects include (i) setting up of Gati Shakti units (ii) prioritization of projects (iii) substantial increase in allocation of funds on priority projects (iv) delegation of powers at field level (v) close    monitoring    of    progress    of  project  at  various  levels,  and  (vi) regular follow up with State Governments and concerned authorities for expeditious  land  acquisition,  forestry  and  Wildlife  clearances  and  for resolving other issues pertaining to projects. This has led to substantial increase in rate of commissioning since 2014.

Ministry  of  Railways  has  launched  'Amrit  Bharat  Station  Scheme'  for development  of  Railway  stations  on  Indian  Railways.  This  scheme envisages development of stations on a continuous basis with a longterm approach.

It  involves  preparation  of  Master  Plans  and  their  implementation  in phases  to  improve  the  amenities  at  the  stations  like  improvement  of station  access,  circulating  areas,  waiting  halls,  toilets,  lift/escalators as necessary, platform surfacing and cover over platform, cleanliness, free Wi-Fi, kiosks for local products through schemes like 'One Station One Product', better passenger information systems, Executive Lounges,  nominated  spaces  for  business  meetings,  landscaping,  etc. keeping in view the necessity at each station.

The  scheme  also  envisages  improvement  of  building,  integrating  the station with both sides of the city, multimodal integration, amenities for Divyangjans, sustainable and environment friendly solutions, provision of ballastless tracks, etc. as per necessity, phasing and feasibility and creation of City Centre at the station in the long term.

So far,  1337  stations  have  been  identified  under  Amrit  Bharat  Station Scheme, out of which 59 stations, including Thawe station, fall under North Eastern Railway.

For  development  works  at  Thawe  station  under  this  scheme,  tenders have been awarded and works of extension of platforms, improvement of platform surfacing, platform shelters, toilets, circulating area, parking facilities, approach road improvement, etc. have been taken up.

Further, upgradation/development/redevelopment of stations over Indian Railways is a continuous and ongoing process and works in this regard  are  undertaken  as  per  requirement,  subject  to  inter-se  priority and availability of funds.

Development/redevelopment/upgradation of Railway Stations is complex in nature involving safety of passengers & trains and requires various  statutory  clearances  such  as  fire  clearance,  heritage,  tree cutting, air-port clearance etc. The progress also gets affected due to brownfield  related  challenges  such  as  shifting  of  utilities,  (involving water/sewage  lines,  optical  fiber  cables,  gas  pipe  lines,  power/signal cables etc.), infringements, operation of trains without hindering passenger  movement,  speed  restrictions  due  to  works  carried  out  in close proximity of tracks and high voltage power lines, etc. and these factors  affect  the  completion  time.  Therefore,  no  time  frame  can  be indicated at this stage.

Development/upgradation/modernization of stations including under Amrit  Bharat  Station  Scheme  is  generally  funded  under  Plan  Head-53 'Customer Amenities'. The details of allocation under Plan Head-53 are maintained  Zonal  Railway-wise  and  not  work-wise  or  station-wise  or State-wise.  Thawe  station  falls  under  North  Eastern  Railway.  For  this zone,  an  allocation  of  ₹550  Cr.  has  been  made  for  the  financial  year 2024-25 under Plan Head-53.

Receipt  of  proposals  from  Zonal  Railways,  inter  alia,  pertaining  to introduction  of  new  train  services,  their  examination  and  decision thereon  is  an  ongoing  process.  Presently,  Thawe  Junction  is  being catered by 30 train services which include 06 Mail/Express services. In addition  to  these  regular  services,  03215/16  Thawe-Patna  Special  is also  catering  to  the  said  station.  Besides,  introduction  of  new  train services is an on-going process on Indian Railways subject to operational feasibility, traffic justification, availability of resources etc.

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