Cabinet Approves Rs 4,474 Cr Rail Projects for Sainthia–Pakur & Santragachi–Kharagpur Fourth Lines

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved two railway infrastructure projects of the Ministry of Railways with a total estimated cost of about Rs 4,474 crore.

The approved projects include the construction of a fourth railway line on the Sainthia–Pakur section and another fourth line on the Santragachi–Kharagpur section. These multi-tracking projects aim to significantly enhance line capacity and streamline train operations across the network.

The expansion is expected to improve mobility, increase operational efficiency and strengthen service reliability for Indian Railways. By reducing congestion on busy routes, the projects will facilitate smoother passenger and freight movement while supporting regional economic development and employment opportunities.

The projects are planned on PM-Gati Shakti National Master Plan with focus on enhancing multi-modal connectivity & logistic efficiency through integrated planning and stakeholder consultations. These projects will provide seamless connectivity for movement of people, goods, and services.

The 02 (Two) projects covering 05 Districts across the states of West Bengal and Jharkhand will increase the existing network of Indian Railways by about 192 Kms.

The approved multi-tracking project will enhance connectivity to approx. 5,652 villages, which are having a population of about 147 lakhs.

The proposed capacity enhancement will improve rail connectivity to several prominent tourist destinations across the country, including Bolpur-Shantiniketan, Nandikeshwari Temple (Shaktipeeth), Tarapith (Shaktipeeth), Patachitra Gram, Dhadika Forest, Bhimbandh Wildlife Sanctuary, Rameshwar Kund, etc.

The approved projects are essential routes for transportation of commodities such as coal, stone, dolomite, cement, slag, gypsum, iron and steel, foodgrains, POL, container, etc. The capacity augmentation works will result in additional freight traffic of magnitude 31 MTPA (Million Tonnes Per Annum). The Railways being environment friendly and energy efficient mode of transportation, will help both in achieving climate goals and minimizing logistics cost of the country, reduce oil import (06 Crore Litres) and lower CO2 emissions (28 Crore Kg) which is equivalent to plantation of 01 (One) Crore trees.