In a bid to scale up coal handling, Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd, a Coal India subsidiary (MCL) has decided to double the 53.1 km Jharsuguda-Sardega rail link, which will shoot-up coal production, “MCL has already invested Rs 11.25 billion on the railway line. We are going to have a second line wherein total project investment will go up to Rs 25 billion. After commissioning of the second line, the handling capacity will be ramped up to 40 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) from 13 mtpa”, said Jaswinder Pal Singh, director (technical & operations), MCL.

Rs 11.25 billion has been invested on the railway line. The investment is likely to go up to Rs 25 billion as the line get doubled up, and the handling capacity will be ramped up to 40 million tonnes per annum from 13 million tonnes per annum, Jaswinder Pal Singh, Director of Technical and Operations), MCL was quoted saying.

The Jharsuguda-Sardega line is set to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi his visit to Odisha on 22 September and dedicate to the nation the Garjanbahal open cast project (OCP) of Mahanadi Coal Fields Ltd.

The Garjanbahal Open Cast Project in Sundargarh district is endowed with 230 million tonnes of coal reserves. The project has an initial mining capacity of 13 million tonnes per annum and is projected to provide direct employment for 894 people and indirect employment for approximately 5,000 others.