20.5.09

Blueprints ready for 4 rail freight corridors

The Planning Commission has prepared the blueprints for four more dedicated rail freight corridors, which could be taken by the new UPA government likely to assume office shortly.
In addition to the ongoing Ludhiana-Kolkata (Eastern Corridor) and Delhi-Mumbai (Western Corridor), the Commission has developed blueprints for Kolkata-Mumbai, Delhi-Chennai, Kharagpur-Vijayawada and Chennai-Goa dedicated freight corridor projects, former member of the Planning Commission Anwarul Hoda said. “The commission is ready with the plan for four dedicated freight corridors—Kolkata-Mumbai, Delhi-Chennai, Kharagpur- Vijayawada and Chennai-Goa,” he said. These four projects would be implemented during the second term of the UPA government, he said adding, these projects are double rail line projects. State-run Dedicated Railway Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited established in October 2006, is implementing the Ludhiana-Kolkata and Delhi-Mumbai freight corridors which are also called Eastern and Western freight corridor, respectively. The total length of these two corridors is around 2,762 Km and the project is likely to entail an investment of over Rs 28,000 crore to Rs 37,000 crore. “Between railways and roadways, railways are cheaper and also environment friendly. we can have more goods moving by railways than roadways. I has greater capacity because railways are in a position to deliver with greater reliability,” Hoda said.
The projected investment in dedicated freight corridor during the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-12) is Rs 30,000 crore.

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