Railways to set up coach factory at Latur

The Ministry of Railways and the Maharashtra government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to set up a rail coach factory at Latur, Maharashtra.

The project aims to generate direct employment to thousands and manifold indirect employment opportunities in Marathwada, one of the most backward regions of the state.

In addition, it will create an industrial ecosystem of ancillary units, which will help in promoting industry in the drought prone region, and overall, benefit the 'Make in India' initiative.

The work on this project will be done on high priority with fast track processing of all approvals. The approximate cost of the project will be around Rs 500 crore in the first phase with approximate land area of 150 hectares.

Speaking on the occasion, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal said that the investment of around Rs 500 crore is for the first phase but the larger idea is to explain the much bigger vision which Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has envisaged.

"Indian Railways have made a small contribution towards the development of Marathwada region and this association will go a long way," Goyal added.

The MoU was signed by B.K. Agrawal, Additional Member (PU), Railway Board and Sanjay Sethi, CEO of Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC), in the presence of Goyal and Fadnavis, at the sidelines of the Magnetic Maharashtra event here.

This was in pursuance to the high level meeting held between Goyal and Fadnavis on January 31, in Mumbai.