News Brief
India's Rail Infra Gets Rs 6,405 Crore Push As Union Cabinet Approves Railway Doubling Projects Across Jharkhand, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh
Indian Railways (PTI) (Representative Image)
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved two major railway infrastructure projects worth Rs 6,405 crore aimed at enhancing rail capacity and operational efficiency across Jharkhand, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh.
The two sanctioned projects are:
Koderma–Barkakana Doubling (133 km): This section runs through the coal producing region of Jharkhand and offers a faster, more efficient rail link between Patna and Ranchi. The doubling will ease congestion and improve the flow of freight and passenger trains on this strategic corridor.
Ballari–Chikjajur Doubling (185 km): This project traverses the Ballari and Chitradurga districts in Karnataka and the Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh.
Together, these projects, covering seven districts across Jharkhand, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, will increase the existing network of Indian Railways by about 318 km and improve connectivity to 1,408 villages with a combined population of over 28.19 lakh.
According to an official release, the capacity augmentation with these projects is projected to support an additional 49 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of freight traffic, which will reduce logistics costs, improve energy efficiency, and support India’s climate goals.
The railway projects are expected to save 52 crore litres and reduce 264 crore kg of CO2 emissions — equivalent to planting 11 crore trees
These projects will be implemented under the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan, which integrates multimodal transport strategies for seamless connectivity.
The initiative also aligns with the government’s vision of making the regions “Atmanirbhar” through infrastructure-led growth and local employment generation.
