THRISSUR: The Kerala government’s ambitious K-Rail project received a fresh lease of life with Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Sunday assuring that the project can be taken forward once the state addresses the technical and environmental issues expeditiously.
“The Kerala chief minister and myself recently met in New Delhi and we discussed it (the K-Rail project). I requested the (honorable) chief minister that whatever technical and environmental issues are there in the design of K-Rail... address them expeditiously so that this project can also be taken forward.
The NDA government believes in cooperative federalism (sic),” Vaishnaw said, addressing reporters and public at the Thrissur railway station during his window trailing inspection held between Ernakulam and Kozhikode railway stations.
The K-Rail project referred to as SilverLine is a 530-km-long semi high-speed rail corridor from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasaragod with an estimated cost of Rs 64,000 crore, as per its website. However, experts reckon that the project will end up costing least Rs 1 lakh crore.
As per the plan, the SilverLine would allow an operating speed of 200kmph, easing transport between the north and south ends of the state by reducing total travel time to less than four hours, compared with the present 10 to 12 hours. The intermediate stations include Kollam, Chengannur, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Kochi Airport, Thrissur, Tirur, Kozhikode and Kannur.
At the same time, Vaishnaw criticised the state government saying only 14% of the land required for railway development in Kerala has been acquired so far. He said while his office was continuously keeping in touch with the authorities in Kerala, the response has been unimpressive.
“For the ongoing rail line doubling projects in Kerala, we need 460 hectares of land. So far, we have got about 63 hectares, which is 14%. We have deposited about Rs 2,100 crore and I am constantly following up with the state government,” he said.
Centre committed to implementing Sabari railway project: Minister
“We seek the support of the state for the development of railways in Kerala,” Vaishnaw said, mentioning that his ministry is earmarking approximately Rs 3,200 crore every year for the state.
The Railways’ vision is to add third and fourth lines on the Mangalore-Shoranur stretch and a third line between Shoranur and Ernakulam across the state, the minister said.
Vaishnaw said the Centre was committed to constructing the much-delayed Sabari railway connecting Angamaly with Erumeli. Sanctioned way back in 1997-98, the project estimate has escalated to over Rs 3,800 crore. “We are committed to constructing the Sabari Rail from Angamaly to Erumeli as per the original alignment.
The state government had recently sent a letter to the Centre, in which it had laid out certain conditions. So, we will soon send a format to the government of Kerala a format done in the case of the Maharashtra government. Once the state fills up the format, the project can begin,” Vaishnaw said.
As per reports, the Kerala government has agreed to shoulder 50% (Rs 1,900 crore) of the revised project cost on condition that the debt incurred by the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) is exempted from the state’s borrowing limit.
Vaishnaw also promised more MEMU services to Kerala. “There is also demand for more trains in Kerala, especially MEMU services. We are increasing the production of MEMU rakes and also trying to bring the new Kavach technology to the entire country. Kerala’s case will be taken up on priority basis. Once the Kavach comes, the capacity will increase and we can run more MEMU trains,” he said.
The minister also admitted that there are some issues in the Ernakulam-Alappuzha-Kayamkulam section where a few trains are being delayed for the timely running of Vande Bharat Express. “There is a criticism that passenger trains are being affected. We will talk to the people’s representatives and see if we can divert the Vande Bharat to the Kottayam section so that the passenger trains can run on time.
