THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A day after the Vande Bharat proposal kicked up a political debate over SilverLine, the Left government’s dream project suffered another setback on Wednesday with the Union government telling Parliament that no sanction has yet been given for the proposal. However, the state government put on a brave face insisting that the Cenre has not denied permission, but only sought certain clarifications.
Stating that the SilverLine’s detailed project report (DPR) is incomplete, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said clearance depends on its techno-economic viability. The DPR does not have sufficient details on the technical feasibility of the project. Responding to questions from UDF MPs N K Premachandran and K Muraleedharan in the Lok Sabha, he said financial viability will also be examined after finalisation of technical parameters.
This is for the first time the Centre has come on record against the project. Noticeably, it came after the state government, during the pre-budget consultations, urged the Centre to give the final nod.
KRDCL has been advised to provide detailed technical documents such as alignment plan, particulars of railway land and private land, crossings over existing railway network, duly depicting affected railway assets through the zonal railways for detailed examination and conclusion on its feasibility.
Ongoing protests against the project too have come to the Centre’s attention, Vaishnaw said. The Centre is waiting for the ongoing Social Impact Assessment study which will bring out the extent of the project’s impact on the public.
The state government chose to play down the new development. There’s no need to say that the Centre won’t issue clearance, said Finance Minister K N Balagopal. “Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has written to the CM saying that the State can go ahead with land acquisition and related activities.
owhere it says that permission for the project has been denied,” he said. The K-Rail authorities also said the Railway has not sent any official communication about denial of clearance. Opposition UDF and BJP once again hit out against the project. “How can the state submit DPR without even the basic details?” asked Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan.