KOCHI: The Angamaly-Erumeli Sabari rail project, which has been pending for a long time, may soon be revived, according to a response given by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav to a question posed by Hibi Eden MP in Lok Sabha.
The Kerala Rail Development Corporation has completed the Final Location Survey (FLS) by Railway instructions, and the remaining land acquisition process will resume as soon as the Detailed Estimate (DE) prepared by KRDCL is approved.
The minister confirmed that the existing new estimate would utilise track infrastructure capable of running all trains, including the Vande Bharat Express.
The Angamaly-Sabarimala new line (116 km) was sanctioned in 1997-98. The project was stalled due to protests by the locals against land acquisition and line alignment, cases against the project and contempt of court cases, as well as a lack of adequate support from the state government.
The reply also notes that after prolonged pressure from the Ministry of Railways, on January 7, 2021, the state announced its decision to pay half of the estimated total project cost of `2,815 crore for the Angamaly-Sabarimala Railway Project through KIIFB.