The Union railway ministry on Thursday approved the Telangana government’s proposal to extend MMTS Phase II to Raigir station to enable pilgrims to reach Yadagirigutta easily. Currently, the Multi Modal Transit System serves passengers up to Ghatkesar on the line leading to Warangal.
With the Telangana government planning to develop Yadagirigutta into a major religious tourist destination, chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao had requested Union railway minister Suresh Prabhu a month ago to extend the MMTS up to Raigir station, which is nearest to Yadagirigutta. In the budget announced on Thursday, the ministry has agreed to extend the service by 32 km from Ghatkesar to Raigir.
As part of the project, a third line will be laid up to Raigir to accommo date the MMTS trains. Of the total project cost of Rs 330 crore, the state government has agreed to pay Rs 220 crore, that is, two thirds of the cost. However, some other announcements that the state government was looking forward to in the railway budget did not come through. Though Prabhu announced funding for some projects relating to railway lines in Telangana, he was silent on setting up of a coach factory at Kazipet in Warangal district.
While the state was expecting Rs 2,500 crore for pending projects, it had to be satisfied with Rs 399 crore, which was allocated for various projects in the state. “We expect that the railway minister would rectify this in the supplementary budget,” said Telangana housing minister A Indrakaran Reddy.
Telangana, however, is happy about the Rs 70 crore allocation for the Peddapalli-Nizamabad rail line. Nizamabad Lok Sabha MP Kalvakuntla Kavitha tweeted her gratitude.”Rs 70 crore for Peddapalli-Nizamabad railway line allocated in the railway budget. Bodan-Bidar railway line approved. Thank U @sureshpprabhu Ji,” she said on the microblogging site.
Among other announcements made for Telangana are the expansion of the suburban network in Hyderabad, Rs 180 crore for Munirabad-Mahbubnagar rail line, Rs 20 crore for Macharla-Nalgonda, Rs 114 crore for a third line between Kazipet and Vijayawada, Rs 80 crore for Secunderabad-Mahbubnagar line doubling, Rs 5 crore for building a subway between Peddapalli and Jagityal, Rs 20 crore for Manoharabad Kothapalli line, and Rs 5 crore for Akkannapeta Medak line.
Source: Times of India