The State is likely to get one more Vande Bharat express train service. The Ministry of Railways is planning to run the new train service between Hubballi and Bengaluru by March 2023.
At a meeting on Saturday between Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, the former directed the officials to complete the doubling work between Hubballi and Bengaluru soon to make the new train operational. At the meeting, the Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited (KPTCL) was asked to complete works augmenting electrification quickly for timely commissioning of electrification and operationalisation of Vande Bharat.
On November 11, Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off South India’s first Vande Bharat train service between Mysuru and Chennai via Bengaluru. Running Vande Bharat train service between Hubballi and Bengaluru will be first the intra-State service.
Special team
At the meeting, a decision was also taken to expedite railway projects in the State by forming a special team of Railways and State government officials. A total of nine railway projects have been taken up for construction under 50:50 funding by the Union and State governments.
The CM instructed officials to clear hurdles for land acquisition and prioritise projects that are more in demand. In the State, 15,000 acres of land are required for railway projects, of which 9,000 have been acquired. The CM said that release of funds by the Ministry of Railways and the State Government in time will help in completion of the project as per the deadline.
The Railway Minister said that there is a need for better coordination between officials for early completion of the project. During the meeting, new railway line projects between Gadag-Wadi, Rayadurg-Tumakruu, Ginigera–Raichur, Tumakuru-Chitradurga-Davangere, Bagalkot–Kudachi, Kadur-Chikkamagaluru-Belur, Belagavi–Dharwad and others were discussed.
Suburban rail
Measures to be taken to expedite the Bengaluru suburban rail project were also discussed.
A senior official said, “There were deliberations over handing over of railway land for the project, funding and other things. Currently, the Baiyappanahalli to Chikkabanavara line has been taken up for construction. The Railway Minister also directed to take up the suburban rail network from the city to Kempegowda International Airport. Meanwhile, he also directed the officials concerned to explore the possibilities of upgrading existing infrastructure to provide more services to the airport.”
Visit to KIA halt station
The Railway Minister visited the halt station which has been operational since January 2021 on the boundary of Kempegowda International Airport. The Minister interacted with officials about the existing MEMU trains services to the airport, future possibilities of increasing the services and other issues.
The train operations between the city and the airport have received poor response from the public owing to various reasons.
Feasibility study
In a press release, the SWR stated that the Minister had directed railway officers to conduct a feasibility study to take up doubling with auto-signalling work along the Yelahanka–Devanahalli section to enhance capacity.
The Minister also advised officers to take up a feasibility study for capacity enhancement of high density railway lines in and around Bengaluru by means of doubling/tripling/quadrupling so that the growing mass transportation needs of the city can be met, on the lines of the Mumbai suburban, in the future.
