In a state where a sizeable chunk of the population supports the decision not to raise train fares, will people be ready to shell out Rs 1,000 or more to cover the 135-odd kilometres between Haldia and Kolkata in less than an hour? This is the question doing the rounds, now that the Spanish consortium engaged by the Indian Railways to conduct a prefeasibility study on a highspeed railway corridor between Kolkata and Haldia has stated that it is possible to run trains between the two locations at 200-300 km per hour.
The ministry of railways, in consultation with state governments, proposed high speed corridors between Delhi-Chandigarh-Amritsar, Pune-Mumbai-Ahmedabad, Hyderabad-Dornakal-Vijaywada-Chennai, Chennai-Bangalore-Coimbatore-Ernakulum, Howrah-Haldia and Delhi-Agra-Lucknow-Varanasi-Patna. It was also proposed to set up a National High Speed Rail Authority (NHSRA) for planning, standard setting, implementing and monitoring these projects. It was estimated that the construction cost per km would be Rs 75-100 crore. Though Haldia is an industrial township and there is a demand for better connectivity from Kolkata, officials aren’t sure whether this ambitious project will be financially viable. In the past, a catamaran service between Kolkata and Haldia had to be closed down due to lack of adequate patronage.
The ministry of railways, in consultation with state governments, proposed high speed corridors between Delhi-Chandigarh-Amritsar, Pune-Mumbai-Ahmedabad, Hyderabad-Dornakal-Vijaywada-Chennai, Chennai-Bangalore-Coimbatore-Ernakulum, Howrah-Haldia and Delhi-Agra-Lucknow-Varanasi-Patna. It was also proposed to set up a National High Speed Rail Authority (NHSRA) for planning, standard setting, implementing and monitoring these projects. It was estimated that the construction cost per km would be Rs 75-100 crore. Though Haldia is an industrial township and there is a demand for better connectivity from Kolkata, officials aren’t sure whether this ambitious project will be financially viable. In the past, a catamaran service between Kolkata and Haldia had to be closed down due to lack of adequate patronage.
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