Naveen irked over delay in Khurda-Bolangir rail link

The Odisha govt has offered to provide free land in the Daspalla-Bolangir stretch (112-289 km) for this rail link and agreed to bear 50 per cent of the project cost

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has voiced his discontent over the delay in implementation of the Khurda Road-Bolangir rail link.

During a review of commerce & transport department, Patnaik advised the department officials to maintain close coordination with the Railway officials to speed up the crucial rail link project.

The Odisha government has offered to provide free land in the Daspalla-Bolangir stretch (112-289 km) for this rail link and agreed to bear 50 per cent of the project cost.

The inordinate delay in commissioning the 289-km Khurda Road-Bolangir rail link, mainly due to problems over land acquisition, have escalated the project cost significantly.

This rail project was sanctioned in 1994-95 and the cost then was estimated at Rs 1,000 crore. But it has now gone up to Rs 1,500 crore. The cost overrun has been due to a steep rise in input costs like steel and cement. The Railway Budget for 2015-16 had allocated Rs 195 crore for this project. Private land of 1,095.91 acres has already been handed over to the Railway authorities. The whole project needs 5,021 acres of land. The chief minister also took stock of the progress made under 'Biju Gaon Gadi Yojana', a scheme meant to improve communication in tribal dominated pockets.

Till now, the scheme has covered 118 ITDA (Integrated Tribal Development Agency) blocks. The chief minister has called for expediting the scheme's coverage to 31 more blocks in the second phase.