THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Southern Railway has announced that it will bear the entire cost of constructing 55 Rail Over Bridges (RoBs) in the state, overriding the usual 50:50 cost-sharing arrangement with the state government.
The decision comes in the wake of state‘s inability to release its agreed share of funds, which has caused years of delay in executing several major infrastructure projects to replace busy level-crossings.
A total of 126 ROBs were originally sanctioned in the state on a cost-sharing basis. However, due to the state government’s failure to provide its portion of the funds, most of these projects have remained languishing, despite their importance for public safety and smoother transportation.
Southern Railway has identified 55 of the most vital ROBs and decided to fund them fully in public interest. These include busy level crossings at several high-traffic areas across the state, such as LC No. 69A between Edappally and Ernakulam North, LC No. 28 between Pudukad and Irinjalakuda in Thrissur, LC No. 558 between Kappil and Varkala Sivagiri in Thiruvananthapuram, LC No. 230 between Thalassery and Etakkot in Kannur, and LC No. 567 between Kadakkavur and Murukkampuzha in Kollam.
The execution of these ROBs has been entrusted to the Kerala Rail Development Corporation Ltd (KRDCL), a joint venture of the state government and the Ministry of Railways.
However, the projects are yet to take off due to a range of issues, including non-approval of project plans, delays in land acquisition, and pending contract finalisations.