Lok Sabha Question No. 6027 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-04-01
Subject: Construction of Kottakadavu ROB
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Shri Shafi Parambil

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 6027 TO BE ANSWERED ON 01.04.2026

## CONSTRUCTION OF KOTTAKADAVU ROB

## 6027. SHRI SHAFI PARAMBIL:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a)  whether  the  proposal  for  construction  of  the  Kottakadavu  Rail  Over Bridge (ROB) near Vadakara Railway Station in Kerala has been pending for the last two decades and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) the reasons for the delay in sanctioning and executing the said project;
- (c) whether the Government is aware that non-construction of the ROB is causing  severe  traffic  congestion  on  National  Highway-66  and  posing safety risks to commuters and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether any technical feasibility study/cost estimate has been prepared for the said project and if so, the present status thereof;
- (e) whether the Government proposes to sanction and execute the project at the earliest and if so, the details thereof; and
- (f) the details of the expected timeline for commencement and completion of the said Rail Over Bridge?

## ANSWER

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

(SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

( a) to (f): There is a LC No. 211 B (Kottakadavu) at Km 709/200-300 between Tikkotti-Vadakara stations. The work of preparation of Technical Feasibility Report  /  Detailed  Project  Report  (TFR  /  DPR)  for  the  construction  of

ROB/RUB at the demanded location has been taken up. `

Sanctioning of works of Road over Bridge (ROB)/Road under Bridge (RUB) in  lieu  of  Level  crossings  (LCs)  is  a  continuous  and  dynamic  process  of Indian Railway. Such works are prioritised and taken up on the basis of its

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impact on safety in train operations, mobility of trains & impact for road users and feasibility etc.

No. of ROBs/ RUBs constructed on Indian Railways during the period 2004-14 vis a vis 2014-26 (Upto Jan'26) is as under:

| Period                | ROBs/ RUBs constructed                                  |
|-----------------------|---------------------------------------------------------|
| 2004-14               | 4,148 Nos.                                              |
| 2014-25 (Upto Jan'26) | 14,024 Nos. (including 121 Nos. in the State of Kerala) |

As on 01.02.2026, 4,802 Nos. ROBs/ RUBs are sanctioned at cost of ₹ 1,14,196  Cr  on  Indian  Railways  including  138  Nos.  Road  Over  Bridge (ROB)/Road  Under  Bridge  (RUB)  are  sanctioned  at  cost  of  ₹  4,835  Cr  in State of Kerala which are at various stages of planning and execution.

106 Nos. ROBs/RUBs are delayed on account of the State Govt. The details are as under:

|   S.No. | Reason                                       |   ROBs/RUBs (in No.) |
|---------|----------------------------------------------|----------------------|
|       1 | Delay in Land Acquisition by State Govt.     |                   38 |
|       2 | Finalization of Alignment by State Govt.     |                   63 |
|       3 | Law & order/ Public Protest/Court cases etc. |                    2 |
|       4 | Agency yet to be fixed                       |                    3 |

Completion  of  any  ROB/RUB  work  depends  on  various  factors  like, fixing  of  approach  alignment,  approval  of  General  Arrangement  Drawing (GAD),  land  acquisition,  removal  of  encroachment,  shifting  of  infringing utilities,  statutory  clearances  from  various  authorities,  law  and  order situation in the area of project / work sites, number of working months in a year for particular project / work sites due to climatic conditions etc. All these factors affect the completion time of the projects / works.

Further, Railways  have  taken  following measures  to  expedite  the progress of work:

- i. Joint  survey  with  concerned  State  Govt./Road  Owning  Authority  is done  before  finalizing  the  General  Arrangement  Drawing   (GAD)  to ensure smooth execution.
- ii. Periodic meetings of Railway & State Government officials are done to resolve various issues related to ROB/RUB works.

iii. Standardization of superstructure drawings for various combinations of  span,  skewness  and  width  of  road  on  Railway  portion  has  been done to avoid delays during the design approval. This has been issued in  the form of compendium, which can be directly adopted for Road Over Bridge across Railway lines for expeditious planning.

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