Chennai: Urging the Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw to ensure adequate allocation of funds for railway projects in the State, Chief Minister M K Stalin pointed out that the sanction made in the interim budget had been slashed in the regular budget from Rs 976.1 crore to Rs 301.3 crore for 11 new railway lines and from Rs 2214.4 crore to 1928.8 crore for doubling of lines.
In a letter to the Union Minister on Monday, Stalin said the reduction of funds worth Rs 674.8 crore for new lines and Rs 285.64 for line doubling in the 2025-25 budget would affect the State as the laying of new tracks and also the additional tracks would be affected.
Also the Chief Minister wanted the Minister to look into some of the pending railway projects connected with the new bus stand at Kilambakkam and demanded the expeditious implementation of the EMU and MRTS lines to provide connectivity to the bus stand for the benefit of the common people.
The new lines that would be affected are Tindivanam-Gingee-Tiruvannamalai, Tindivanam-Nagari, Athipattu-Puttur, Erode-Palani, Chennai-Cuddalore-Mahabalipuram, Madurai-Tuticorin via Arupukottai and Sriperumbudur-Guduvanchery with spur at Irungattukottai-Avadi-Sriperumbudur.
Stalin mentioned 12 lines in which the doubling work would run into trouble and among them was Chennai Beach to Egmore and also demanded expedition of some Chennai area railway work like early introduction of EMU services in the Beach-Tambaram-Chengalpattu sector.
He also wanted restoration of MRTS line/services to Beach station and handing over the process of MRTS line to the State government by duly obtaining approval of Railway Board and also expediting approval of the integrated ticketing system.
