ROURKELA: Even BJP leaders are fighting among themselves demanding new railway division at Rourkela and Jharsuguda, the Rourkela Railway Division Action Committee (RRDAC), has decided to seek intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to consider the Steel City on merit. The apolitical outfit announced this at an all party meeting on Sunday.
According to RRDAC convenor Suman Dutta, Rourkela railway junction in the mining and industrial district of Sundargarh deserves to have a railway division and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik too had mooted for unification of railway networks in Odisha with creation of a new division at Rourkela under the East Coast Railway (ECoR) with bifurcation of the Chakradharpur Division (in Jharkhand) of South Eastern Railway (SER).
Recently, an RRDAC delegation met Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and other authorities concerned. Dutta said Sundargarh MP Jual Oram, who was present at the meeting, reiterated his support for the cause. Besides, six MLAs of the district pledged their support over phone. A memorandum would be sent to the PM and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday.
Chakradharpur Division with annual freight revenue of about Rs 12,000 crore is one of the highest revenue generating divisions of Indian Railways of which Sundargarh, Keonjhar and Jharsuguda districts in Odisha contribute about Rs 7,000 crore. Sundargarh contributes the maximum but not even a small fraction of revenue is spent for development of the region, he pointed out.
Out of total 742 km route length of Chakradharpur Division, 406 km runs through these three Odisha districts and again Sundargarh accounts for maximum track length. With inclusion of Rourkela-Biramitrapur, Rourkela-Nuagaon, Rourkela-Jaraikela, Rourkela-Barsuan-Kiriburu, Rourkela-Jharsuguda-Brajarajnagar-Belpahar, Bimalagarh-Talcher, Bansapani-Bimalagarh, Kiriburu-Bolanikhadan and Jharsuguda-Sundargarh-Talsara routes and using vital railway installations and surplus vacant railway land, a new division can be created easily at Rourkela, Dutta claimed. Sources said, RRDAC members plan to meet the PM and CM soon over the demand.