ANANTAPUR: The entire 90km stretch from Gooty to Dharmavaram now stands electrified with double railway line connectivity as the South Central Railway has successfully commissioned the doubling and electrification of the section between Chigicherla to Dharmavaram.Acting as a gateway to the south Indian state, the Gooty-Dharmavaram doubling project is a crucial link in Andhra Pradesh and serves as one of the important routes connecting both the Telugu States along with Bengaluru and beyond.
The project is being executed by Rail India Technical and Economic Service (RITES). The sanctioned cost of the project is `636.39 crore and is completely funded by Railways.
Moreover, the doubling and electrification works were taken in a phased manner. The works between Kalluru-Garladinne for a distance of 13km were completed in September 2019. This was followed by the commissioning of 11km between Chigicherla and Jangalapalle during June 2020, 9km between Garladinne-Taticherla during November 2020, 27km between Kalluru-Gooty during October 2021 and 19km between Taticherla-Jangalapalle in August 2022. Now, with the completion of the last stretch of 11km, the entire project stands commissioned for train operations.
This will ease the congestion on this vital saturated section and enables to run more passenger and freight trains towards Bengaluru and beyond. It will also help in increasing the average speed of the trains in the section, while also aiding in the socio-economic development of the region with enhanced train connectivity.