March 2, 2024: Minister of Information and Broadcasting and Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Singh Thakur on March 1 said that devotees from Himachal Pradesh travelling to Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh will now be able to reach the city of confluence directly. The railways has approved to extend the Indore-Chandigarh Express all the way to Una, Himachal Pradesh.
Thakur said, “Prayagraj, the city of confluence, is a major religious site, and a large number of people from Himachal undertake pilgrimages there. However, travellers faced difficulties due to the lack of direct train connectivity from Himachal to Prayagraj. I am delighted to inform you that the railway minister has approved the extension of the Indore-Chandigarh Express, which used to run twice a week, all the way to Una. This train will now run from Una to Indore, providing significant convenience to passengers.”
Train number 19307/08, Indore-Chandigarh Express will depart from Indore at 5:30 in the morning and arrive in Una at 8:35 next morning. Similarly, it will depart from Una at 1:50 in the afternoon and reach Indore at 3:05 in the afternoon the next day. The timetable will be released soon.
Thakur further stated, “Recently, the railway minister has extended the train from Una, Himachal Pradesh to Saharanpur till Haridwar following my request. Prior to this, on February 17, I obtained approval for the construction of a bridge over the Chakki River, which will soon restore rail service between Pathankot and Jogindernagar. Additionally, the rail track between Kangra and Nurpur will also be restored soon.”
For the fiscal year 2023-24, Rs 1,838 crore has been allocated for railway expansion in Himachal Pradesh, said the minister. In the Budget for 2023-24, Rs 1,000 crore has been approved for the strategic importance of the Bhanupali-Bilaspur-Beri rail line, Rs 450 crore for the Chandigarh-Baddi rail line and Rs 452 crore for the Nangal-Talwara rail line. Currently, work is underway on four projects covering 258 km in the state, with an estimated cost of Rs 19,556 crore., Thakur added.
Thakur stated, “For years, there has been a demand in the Gagret Assembly constituency of Una district in my parliamentary constituency for various infrastructural improvements. The approval for a 500-meter long double-lane bridge over the Loharli Khad, the inauguration of the Daulatpur Chowk railway station, electrification of the railway line up to Amb railway station and the expansion of the foot overbridge, approval for a second platform and foot overbridge at Una railway station, expansion of the old bridge, approval for new railway trains, along with stops for major trains, including the Churaru Takrala Ambala Cantt-Daulatpur Chowk Passenger Special Train and the Raimehatpur Saharanpur-Una Himachal Passenger Express, are significant gifts from the Modi government for the entire state of Himachal Pradesh.”
Thakur further stated that from 2014 to March 2019, the work on the Amb-Andaura, Chintpurni Marg and Daulatpur Chowk railway stations was completed.
“Today, a total of 13 trains connect this district to various parts of the country from Una and Amb Andaura railway stations. The Sabarmati railway station also has daily train services from Una. The announcement of the Una-Hamirpur railway line was reiterated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Investor Meet held in Dharamshala in 2019. In fact, this railway line was considered economically and socially significant thrice, and steps were reiterated for its construction in the Lok Sabha rail Budget presentations from 2014 to 2019. However, this announcement gained momentum when Prime Minister Modi ji, considering Himachal Pradesh as his second home, recognised the importance of this railway line and personally announced it and also directed the railway ministry to fulfil the pre-construction formalities to commence the construction to strengthen the state’s economy,” the minister said.
“This railway line will enhance religious and tourism activities in the state by connecting places like Maa Jwala Mukhi, Maa Chintpurni, Maa Brajeshwari, Maa Chamunda, etc., thereby contributing to the revenue of the state. Moreover, it will benefit the youth serving in the Indian Army and paramilitary forces from areas such as Sarkaghat and Dharampur tehsils in Hamirpur and Mandi districts respectively, as well as Palampur, Baijnath, Jaisinghpur tehsils in Kangra district by providing them with access to the nearest railway stations for travel. The Himachal Pradesh government will contribute Rs 1,500 crore and the Central government Rs 4,300 crore for the construction of the Una-Hamirpur railway line,” he said.
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