Rs 3,000 crore needed for rail infrastructure

KOCHI: Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu has said that the cost of having four-lane tracks on the Kayamkulam-Thiruvananthapuram and Ernakulam-Shornur stretches in Kerala will be Rs 3,000 crore.

Stressing on the urgent need for augmenting capital investments by the Railways, the minister said that a state like Kerala needed to increase investments in railway infrastructure.      

“In a state like Kerala, where there is not much difference between villages and towns, rail tracks have to be developed immediately to introduce more train services. Two more tracks have to be constructed along the very busy Ernakulam-Shornur and Thiruvananthapuram–Kayamkulam routes for which an investment of Rs 3,000 crore is required. The Railways can’t progress further without enhancing capital investment for which maximum effort is being made,” he said after inaugurating the new DEMU services in Ernaklam on Sunday.

The minister, however, denied the charge that the Railways has always shown discrimination against Kerala. “The Centre has not shown any neglect to the state. Introduction of the first AC DEMU service in the country in Ernakulam will prove that the charge of neglect is baseless.” Enough funds have been allocated for track doubling works and instruction issued to complete the works in the stipulated time.

“Discussions are on with the states including Kerala on identifying solutions to issues in the rail transport sector,” the minister said. Doubling of tracks in the Erankulam-Kottayam sector will be completed this year while the same in the Ernakulam-Alapuzha sector will be taken up in the coming years, he added.