Odisha CM ask Railways not to take away Waltair divn from ECoR

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today urged the Ministry of Railways not to take away Waltair division of East Coast Railway (ECoR) to facilitate formation of a new Railway Zone in Andhra Pradesh.
He also asked the ministry to create three more railway divisions under the ECoR.
"I understand that there is a demand for the existing Waltair Railway Division (Vishakhapatanam) to be taken away from the jurisdiction of East Coast Railway to facilitate formation of new Railway Zone in Andhra Pradesh," Patnaik wrote in a letter to Railway Minister Piyush Goyal.
It is learnt that Ministry of Railways is considering setting up a new railway zone, headquartered in Andhra Pradesh, Patnaik said in the letter.

"Since our proposal of creating three more divisions to unify Odisha under one zone of East Coast Railway is pending with the ministry since last 3 years, I would like to reiterate that the same be considered before considering creation of any new zone," Patnaik said.
Terming this decision of the ministry as one-sided move, Patnaik said Odisha was the largest contributor to the railways in the country.

He said the state of Odisha has given huge revenue to the Indian Railways with its abundance of mineral wealth.
The state has been neglected in terms of rail infrastructure development, Patnaik said.

The East Coast Railway was made functional from April 1, 2003 with three divisions namely, Khurda Road, Sambalpur and Waltair.
"It is being progressively realised by all concerned that the artificial barriers of divisional and zonal boundaries are now impending further growth which Odisha is capable of offering to Indian Railways," the Odisha chief minister said.
In addition, the Odisha chief minister has proposed to set up new railway divisions at Rourkela, Jajpur or Jajpur-Keonjhar Road and Rayagada.
"Our government has been drawing the attention of your ministry to consider expanding the jurisdiction of ECoR to cover all the parts of Odisha under one zone to enhance the benefits of integration and unhindered mobility this growth intensive state," Patnaik said.

The proposed reorganisation will help the Railways in better delivery of service in the state in terms of both meeting the requirements of the large and medium freight customers, the aspiration of amenities for the people and also in expediting the project work, the chief minister's letter said.