Inter-ministerial Group to decide the fate of Namkum-Kandra railway link
14 Dec, 2013
An application was filed with the Railway Board, India under the Right to Information (RTI) Act seeking to get the details about the long-pending Rs 900 crore Namkum-Kandra railway link between Ranchi and Jamshedpur.
The Railway Board, in its reply to the application, stated that a feasibility survey of the proposed rail link was conducted by its construction department and the report has been submitted almost two years ago. Then the proposal was forwarded to the Planning Commission for in-principle approval.
The RTI reply states that the proposal was sent back by the Planning Commission with a recommendation that it should be discussed at the inter-ministerial group meetings. The inter-ministerial group comprises of the Union Railway Ministry and Union Finance Ministry and the Planning Commission. The reply also revealed that the state government has agreed to share 50 per cent of the project cost which was pegged at Rs. 900 crore when it was proposed five years ago.
The proposed rail link will shorten the rail distance between Ranchi and Jamshedpur by around 90 km and the travel time by around 50%.