The North Western Railway (NWR) zone has received a major boost in the budget presented in the Lok Sabha on Monday, with an allocation of Rs 9714.28 crore for the financial year 2024-25. This is an increase of Rs 12.47 crore or 0.13% from the previous year’s budget of Rs 8636.85 crore.
The budget allocation for NWR includes Rs 1438 crore for new lines, Rs 129 crore for gauge conversion and Rs 925 crore for doubling. These funds will be used for various ongoing and new projects in the zone, which covers parts of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Haryana and Punjab.
According to NWR officials, eight new rail lines will be constructed and seven existing lines will be doubled in Rajasthan, which will enhance connectivity and capacity in the state. Some of the important projects are: Jodhpur-Pali-Marwar new line (272 km), Phulera-Ringas-Churu new line (242 km), Sawai Madhopur-Gangapur City-Kota new line (160 km), Barmer-Munabao new line (183 km), Ajmer-Pushkar new line (15 km), Bhilwara-Chittorgarh new line (89 km), Jaipur-Sikar new line (114 km) and Jaisalmer-Sam new line (41 km).
The budget also provides Rs 75 crore for the gauge conversion of the 152 km Marwar-Mavli section, which will connect the important tourist destinations of Udaipur and Mount Abu with broad gauge network. The project is expected to be completed by March 2025.
Another key focus of the budget is the electrification of railway tracks, for which Rs 990 crore has been allocated. This will help in reducing the carbon footprint and operational costs of the railways, as well as improving speed and reliability. Some of the sections that will be electrified are: Rewari-Bikaner via Loharu (487 km), Jaipur-Phulera-Ringas (142 km), Ajmer-Udaipur (301 km), Ajmer-Chittorgarh (190 km) and Jodhpur-Luni (135 km).
The budget also earmarks Rs 2222.28 crore for passenger amenities, which will include improvement of stations, platforms, foot over bridges, escalators, lifts, toilets, drinking water facilities, CCTV cameras, wi-fi and other services. The NWR zone has 578 stations, of which 52 are identified as Adarsh stations.
The NWR General Manager, Mr. R.K. Sharma, expressed his gratitude to the Railway Minister, Mr. Piyush Goyal, for the generous budget allocation and said that it will help in fulfilling the aspirations of the people of the region. He said that the NWR zone is committed to providing safe, comfortable and efficient rail services to the passengers and freight customers. He also appealed to the state governments and other stakeholders to cooperate with the railways in the timely completion of the projects.
