The Mysuru-Kodagu railway line is set to become a reality as the techno-economic survey for the entire stretch of 130 km is expected to secure approval from the Railway Board in due course.
Once it is cleared, the final location survey will also be taken up to pave way for the actual commencement of the new railway line project to be implemented on a cost-sharing basis between the railways and state government.
According to railway officials here, the survey report has given a positive appraisal of the internal rate of returns on investment. “The first survey was only confined to the Mysuru-Kushalnagar stretch; but the second phase linking Kushalnagar too has been completed and the report for the entire stretch was submitted to the Railway Board for clearance a few months ago,” said railway officials.
Meanwhile, at a press conference here on Friday, the Divisional Railway Manager Atul Gupta and other senior officials confirmed that the techno-economic survey has been completed and submitted to the higher authorities. Though they did not comment on the rate of returns on investment, Mr. Gupta said that even if the rate of returns are low railway projects help in shoring up the overall economic development of a region.
The new line survey was included in the 2016-17 Railway Budget with allocation under the Extra Budgetary Resources. The alignment of the new line includes Belagola, Hunsur, Periyapatana and Kushalnagar before terminating at Madikeri.
The project was initially shelved as economically unviable due to the negative rate of returns on investment. But the state government promised to pitch in with its share to reduce the burden on the railways. Sources said even the Final Location Survey, which will cost around Rs.10 crore, will be taken up on a cost sharing basis. When launched, it will put Kodagu on the railway map and provide a link to rest of the country.
The project has a long history with the Mysore-Madikeri line first mooted around 1881-82, as per the Mysore Gazetteer. But it never took off.
Opposition
However, there is opposition brewing to the railway line project among a section of the people, including environmentalists who have questioned the need for a railway line beyond Kushalnagar, the point from where the ghat section and forests start. There are fears that large swathes of forest land would be diverted for the project, resulting in greater anthropogenic pressure on wildlife escalating man-elephant conflict in the region.
