Railways to offer civil contracts for 1,000 km next fiscal

Railway Minister Mallikarjun Kharge Wednesday said that the government has set a target to award construction contracts for about 1,000 km in the next fiscal for implementing eastern and western dedicated freight corridors project.

"Implementation of the eastern and western dedicated freight corridors project is making good progress with the award of nearly 1,100 km of civil construction contracts till now," Kharge said in his maiden rail budget speech.

"During 2014-15, another 1,000 km of civil construction contracts are targeted, besides award of Systems contracts."

The minister said a joint feasibility study for Mumbai-Ahmedabad high speed corridor has been started and will be completed in 18 months.

The joint study is being co-financed by Indian Railways and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

Apart from a feasibility study, a business development study on the same corridor is also being undertaken by French Railways (SNCF). The study is expected to be completed by April 2014.

The minister added that besides the high speed projects, railways intend to explore low cost options for raising speeds to 160-200 km per hour on select routes like Delhi-Agra and Delhi-Chandigarh.