: Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on Monday refrained from making any announcement on the proposed railway zone while pledging his Ministry’s support for speedy development of the State.
Mr. Prabhu promised to do whatever is required for helping A.P. in realising its true potential, but remained tight-lipped about the railway zone, though it was repeatedly mentioned by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.
Flagging off a super-fast train between Vijayawada and Secunderabad and laying foundation stones for doubling of Guntakal-Kallur line and a Multi-Modal Logistics Park (MMLP) at Krishnapatnam, all through remote link, Mr. Prabhu said a survey was under way for a 67-km new line between Vijayawada and Guntur via Amaravati among a slew of new line and doubling projects and promised to introduce more trains between Vijayawada, Guntur and Secunderabad in the future as many people would be commuting between those cities. He said MMLPs were sanctioned for Visakhapatnam and Kakinada . Mr. Prabhu said a dedicated freight corridor between Kolkata and Vijayawada and another one between New Delhi and Chennai were going to play a catalytic role in the development of A.P.
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While reiterating the need for establishing railway connectivity from Chennai, Visakhapatnam, Hyderabad and Bengaluru to the Capital City Amaravati, Mr. Chandrababu Naidu said the State looked forward to sanction of the railway zone which figures in the A.P Reorganisation Act. He said Mr. Prabhu was seized of the matter and hoped it would be cleared sooner than later.