New rail link in Maharashtra to aid sugar industry

A trade link via Warananagar in the Kolhapur district to Karad in the Satara district, covering 55 km and bypassing 155 km between Kolhapur and Karad, will be constructed at a cost of Rs 247 crore.

The proposed rail link will reduce the cost of transport to any destination in the country and abroad, helping sugar mills as well as industry in the region, which will gain from a reduction in the transport cost.

The project will be funded by the development wing of the Union railway ministry as also various institutions in the corporate and cooperative sectors in the region. The ministry of railways will contribute Rs 123 crore, while private players will invest Rs 37 crore. Another Rs 87 crore will come in through bank loans.

While elaborating on the project details, the state minister of non-conventional energy Vinay Kore said that for the rail road of 55 kilometers about 425 acers of land have to be acquired for which land owners in the region will be compensated.

Due to export of sugar and other products transport cost will be reduced and sugarcane farmers will benefit as the cost of sugar production is reduced and mills will be able to pay better price for their sugarcane. The link will also help in transportation of industrial products at a lower cost thereby ensuring better profit margin.

The railway ministry will soon visit the site and carry out the relevant survey to give a boost to the project which will be completed within three years.

Keeping in mind the rapid globalisation and additional export potential of the region, this project has special and global significance, says Kore.