Lok Sabha Question No. 230 (STARRED), answered on 2024-12-11
Subject: Status of Semi-High Speed and High-Speed Rail Projects
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Shri Tharaniventhan M S, Shri C N Annadurai

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS LOK SABHA

## STARRED QUESTION NO. 230 TO BE ANSWERED ON 11.12.2024

## STATUS OF SEMI-HIGH SPEED AND HIGH-SPEED RAIL PROJECTS

*230.  SHRI THARANIVENTHAN M S: SHRI C N ANNADURAI:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a) the current status of semi-high speed and high-speed rail projects in the  country  including  Tamil  Nadu  along  with  the  details  of  the  routes, expected completion dates and the progress made so far;
- (b) whether the Government has plans to extend the said rail network to other parts of the country and if so, the details of the proposed routes under  consideration  alongwith  the  criteria  adopted  for  selecting  these routes;
- (c) the specific benefits that the said rail projects are expected to bring to  the  country  including  Tamil  Nadu  in  terms  of  reducing  travel  time, enhancing connectivity and promoting economic growth;
- (d)  whether  International  funding  or  collaboration  has  been  sought  for the said rail projects and if so, the details of the countries or agencies involved and the terms of the agreements entered into;
- (e)  the  total  funds  allocated  for  the  development  of  these  rail  projects along  with  the  share  of  funding  sources  from  the  Government,  State Governments and private players;
- (f)  the  measures being taken to ensure timely completion of semi high speed and high speed rail projects in Tamil Nadu including any delays faced and the reasons therefor; and
- (g)  whether  the  Government  has  conducted  detailed  cost-benefit  or feasibility studies for the said rail corridors and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

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

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

*****

STATEMENT  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a)  TO  (g)  OF  LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 230 TO BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 11.12.2024.

(a) to (g): Railway  projects  are  surveyed/  sanctioned/executed  Zonal Railway  wise  and  not  State-wise  as  the  Railway  projects  may  span across State boundaries. Railway projects are sanctioned on the basis of remunerativeness, traffic projections, last mile connectivity, missing links  and  alternate  routes,  augmentation  of  congested/saturated  lines, demands raised by State Governments, Central Ministries, Members of Parliament,  other  public  representatives,  Railway's  own  operational requirement, socio-economic considerations etc. depending upon throwforward of ongoing projects and overall availability of funds.

Railway infrastructure projects falling fully/partly  in  the  State  of  Tamil Nadu are covered under Southern Railway (SR), South Central Railway (SCR) and South Western Railway (SWR) zones of Indian Railways. Zonal Railway wise details of Railway projects including cost, expenditure and outlay are made available in public domain on Indian Railway's website.

As on 01.04.2024, Railway Infrastructure projects falling under state of Tamil Nadu fully/partly are 22 (10 New Line, 03 Gauge Conversion and 09 Doubling) of total length 2,587 Km, costing ₹ 33,467 crore, out of which 665 Km length has been commissioned and an expenditure   of  ₹ 7,153 crore  has   been   incurred   upto  March' 2024.   The summary is as under:-

| Plan Head               |   No. of projects |   Total Length (in Km) |   Length Commissioned (in Km) |   Expenditure upto March 2024 ( ₹ in Cr.) |
|-------------------------|-------------------|------------------------|-------------------------------|-------------------------------------------|
| New Line                |                10 |                    872 |                            24 |                                      1223 |
| Gauge Conversion        |                 3 |                    748 |                           604 |                                      3267 |
| Doubling/ Multitracking |                 9 |                    967 |                            37 |                                      2664 |
| Total                   |                22 |                   2587 |                           665 |                                      7153 |

Budget  allocation  for  infrastructure  projects  and  safety  works,  falling fully/partly in the State of Tamil Nadu is as under:-

| Period   | Outlay                            |
|----------|-----------------------------------|
| 2009-14  | ₹ 879 crore/year                  |
| 2024-25  | ₹ 6,362 crore (more than 7 times) |

Though fund allocation has increased manifold but pace of execution of project is dependent on expeditious land acquisition. Railway acquires the  land  through  State  Government  and  the  completion  of  a  railway projects is dependent  of  land acquisition.  However,  Execution  of important infrastructure projects falling fully/partly in the State of Tamil Nadu  are  held  up  due  to  delay  in  land  acquisition.  Status  of  land acquisition in the State of Tamil Nadu is as under:

| Total Land required for Projects in Tamil Nadu   | 3389 Ha       |
|--------------------------------------------------|---------------|
| Land Acquired                                    | 866 Ha (26%)  |
| Balance Land to be acquired                      | 2523 Ha (74%) |

Government of India is geared up to execute projects, however success depends upon the support of Government of Tamil Nadu.  For instance, details of some major projects which are delayed due to land acquisition are as under:-

|   SN | Name of the project                         |   Total land required (in Ha) |   Land acquired (in Ha) |   Balance Land to be acquired (in Ha) |
|------|---------------------------------------------|-------------------------------|-------------------------|---------------------------------------|
|    1 | Tindivanam -Tiruvannamalai new line (71 Km) |                           273 |                      33 |                                   240 |
|    2 | Attiputtu - Puttur New Line (88 Km)         |                           189 |                       0 |                                   189 |
|    3 | Morappur - Dharmapuri (36 Km)               |                            93 |                       0 |                                    93 |
|    4 | Mannargudi - Pattukkottai (41 Km)           |                           152 |                       0 |                                   152 |
|    5 | Thanjavur - Pattukottai (52 Km)             |                           196 |                       0 |                                   196 |

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 climate conditions etc.

Presently,  Mumbai-Ahmedabad  High  Speed  Rail  (MAHSR)  Project  (508 Kms) is  the  only  sanctioned  project  of  High  Speed  Rail  in  India  under execution with technical and financial assistance from Government of Japan. Entire land (1389.5 Ha) has been acquired. Till now, 368 Kms. of Pier  Foundation,  346  Kms.  of  Pier  Construction,  274  Kms.  of  Girder Casting  and  234  Kms.  of  Girder  Launching  have  been  completed.  The work of the under-sea tunnel (21 Kms. Approx.) has also started.

Being highly capital intensive, the decision to sanction any HSR Project depends  on  many  factors  such  as  outcome  of  DPR,  techno-economic feasibility, availability of resources such as financing options etc.

Further,  with  a  view  to  provide  better  travel  experience  and  improved safety, Indian Railways are introducing Vande Bharat trains which have enhanced safety features  and  modern  passenger  amenities.  Presently, 136 Vande Bharat services, including 16 Vande Bharat trains, which on originating/terminating basis serve various stations, located in the State of  Tamil Nadu. Besides, introduction of train services, including Vande Bharat services, is an on-going process on Indian Railways, subject to traffic justification, operational feasibility, availability of resources, etc. However,  as  the  Railway  network  straddles  across  State  boundaries trains are introduced, as per network requirement, across such boundaries.

*****