Kolkata, August 12, 2026

 

In a written reply to the question asked by MP Mala Roy in the Lok Sabha today, regarding the railway projects sanctioned by the West Bengal Government in the last three months and the fund released for the so, the Minister for Railways, Information & Broadcasting and Electronics and Information Technology, Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw stated that Budget allocation in the recent years has increased significantly. Budget allotment of projects is made commensurate to the progress achieved in any project. Budget allocation for infrastructure projects and safety works, falling fully/partly in the State of West Bengal is as under:

Period                  Outlay

2009-14           Rs.4,380 Cr./year

2026-27           Rs. 14,205 Cr. (More than 3 times)

According to the Minister, as on 01.04.2026, 63 projects (14 New Lines, 04 Gauge Conversions and 45 Doubling), covering a total length of 5,148 Km, costing ₹83,433 crore, falling fully/partly in West Bengal are sanctioned.

The Minister also delineated on the details some of the recently completed projects falling fully/partly in the State of West Bengal are as under:

S. No.            Project                                               Cost (Rs in crore)

(Rs. in Cr.)

1          Rampurhat-Mandarhill new line (130 Km)            908

2          Azimganj-Murshidabad new line (7 Km)                164

3          Bardhaman-Katwa Gauge Conversion (52 Km)        696

4          Ahmedpur-Katwa Gauge Conversion (52 Km)          440

5          Panskura Kharagpur Doubling (45 Km)                    408

6          Lalgola – Jiaganj Doubling (23 Km)                         124

7          Krishnanagar-Bethuadahari Doubling (28 Km)         152

8          Nabadwipdham-Patuli Doubling (22 Km)                   170

9          Bethuadhahari-Plassey Doubling (23 km)                    132

10        Ambikakalna-Nabadwipdham Doubling (23 km)         145

11        Nalhati-Sagardighi Doubling (26 km)                           193

12        Tamluk Jn.- Basulya Sutahata Doubling (24 km)          245

13        Plassey- Jiaganj Doubling (54 km)                                    234

14        Azimganj-Manigram Doubling (21 km)                             150

15        New Coochbehar-Gumanihat Doubling (29 km)               330

16        New Coochbehar-Samuktala Road Doubling (29 km)       445

17        Sainthia-Tarapith 3rd line (22 Km)                                    186

18        Ambari Falakata-New Maynaguri Doubling (38 km)            843

19        Bandel-Boinchi - 3rd line (31 km)                                      546

20        Boinchi-Shaktigarh 3rd line (26 km)                                    424

21        Bazar Sau-Azimganj Jn. Doubling (42 km)                          343

22        Sagardighi- Malda Town Doubling (25 Km)                         248

23        Kharagpur-Narayangarh 3rd line (24 km)                            270

24        Monigram-Nimtita Doubling (24 Km)                                713

25        Purulia-Kotshila Doubling (36 Km)                                    393

According to Shri Vaishnaw, in order to strengthen coordination for expeditious implementation of railway connectivity projects across state, monitoring progress of such projects & facilitating coordinated resolution of implementation issues, a task force has been constituted under chairmanship of Chief Secretary, West Bengal by Govt of West Bengal.

Chingrighata Matter:

Further, temporary diversion of traffic at Chingrighata crossing for launching of viaduct segments for construction of Kolkata Metro was permitted by the State government in May-26 after almost 1.5 years since the request was made. The work of Chingrighata crossing was finally completed on May-26.

Completion of Railway project/s depends on various factors which include the following:

•           Land acquisition

•           Forest clearance

•           Shifting of infringing utilities

•           Statutory clearances from various authorities

•           Geological and topographical conditions of area

•           Law and order situation in the area of project site

•           Number of working months in a year for a particular project site etc.

All these factors affect the completion time and cost of the project/s.

The Minister said, Sanctioning and execution of works of Road over Bridge (ROB)/Road under Bridge (RUB) in lieu of Level crossings (LCs) is a continuous and dynamic process of Indian Railway. Such works are prioritised and taken up on the basis of its impact on safety in train operations, mobility of trains & impact for road users and feasibility etc. As on 01.06.2026, 4,993 Nos. ROB/ RUB works at an approximate cost of ₹ 1,17,492 Cr are sanctioned on Indian Railways including 363 Nos. ROB/RUB works at an approximate cost of ₹8,060 Cr are at various stages of planning and execution in the State of West Bengal. Total 09 Nos. of ROBs/RUBs have been completed in West Bengal during the year 2026-27 (Up to May’26).

During the last three months 15 Nos. ROB and 24 Nos. RUB works at an approximate cost of ₹1,460 Cr have been sanctioned in the State of West Bengal.

Completion & commissioning of ROB/RUB works depends on various factors like cooperation of  State Governments in giving  consent for closure of LC,  fixing of approach alignment, approval of General Arrangement Drawing (GAD), land acquisition, removal of encroachment, shifting of infringing utilities, statutory clearances from various authorities,  law and order situation in the area of project / work sites,  duration of working season in a year for the particular project / area  due to climatic conditions etc.  All these factors affect the completion time of the projects / works.  Therefore, it is not feasible to fix definite timelines for completion of ROB/RUB works.

As on 01.04.2026, 99 Nos. ROB/RUB Works were held up on account of State Govt. of West Bengal on account of non-finalisation of alignment, law & order issues etc. However, in the last two and a half months, lots of initiatives have been taken to resolve the long pending issues related to ROB/RUB works:

(i)  Govt. of West Bengal has constituted a task force headed by the chief secretary and senior officers from Govt. of West Bengal, local bodies and Railways which is proactively clearing the decision related to ROB/RUB works.

(ii) As a result, the joint site visits are being conducted at all the held up/ delayed works and action is being done to finalise the feasible alignment which is required before land acquisition is taken up. To facilitate the finalisation of alignment, Govt. of West Bengal/PWD has also issued a check list.

(iii) Further, Govt. of West Bengal has conveyed as in-principle approval to make available free of cost the Government land for ROB/RUB works.

Due to the above-mentioned proactive steps taken, till date, joint site visits have been conducted at all 99 locations and 26 Nos. ROB/RUB works have already been resolved.

Further, Railways have taken following measures to expedite the progress of ROB/RUB works:

(i)  Joint survey with concerned State Govt./Road Owning Authority is done before finalizing the General Arrangement Drawing (GAD) to ensure smooth execution. 

(ii) Periodic meetings of Railway & State Government officials are done to resolve various issues related to ROB/RUB works.

(iii) Standardisation of superstructure drawings for various combinations of span, skewness and width of road on Railway portion has been done to avoid delays during the design approval. This has been issued in the form of a compendium, which can be directly adopted for Road Over Bridge across Railway lines for expeditious planning.

On station redevelopment, the minister stated, Ministry of Railways has launched the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme for redevelopment of stations with a long-term approach. The scheme involves preparation of master plans and their implementation in phases to improve the stations of Indian Railways. The master planning, keeping in view the necessity of each station, includes:

•           Improvement of access to station and circulating areas

•           Integration of station with both sides of city

•           Improvement of station building

•           Improvement of waiting halls, toilets, sitting arrangement, water booths

•           Provision of wider foot over bridge/subway to commensurate with passenger traffic

•           Provision of lifts/escalators/ramps

•           Improvement of platform surface/ provision of platform shelter

•           Provision of kiosks for local products through schemes like ‘One Station One Product’

•           Parking development

•           Amenities for Divyangjans

•           Better passenger information systems

•           Provision of air concourse, executive lounges, Multimodal integration, landscaping, etc.

The scheme also envisages sustainable and environment friendly solutions etc. as per necessity, phasing and feasibility and creation of city centre at the station in the long term.

So far, 1,340 stations have been identified for development under this scheme, out of which 102 stations, are located in West Bengal. Development works at railway stations under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme in West Bengal have been taken up at a good pace, he added. The activities for development at other stations of West Bengal have also been taken up at good pace and progress of some of the stations is as given below:

•           Asansol Junction station: The structural work of new station building block no. 4 of South Wing, building block no. 1, 2 and 3 of North Wing have been completed. The structural work of new station building block no. 3 of South Wing, extension of 6 m wide foot over bridge and air concourse have been taken up.

•           New Jalpaiguri Junction station: The works of new station building at second entry, Rail Mail Service office building and structural work of new departure station building up to fourth floor have been completed. The structural works of new arrival station building at main entry, structural work of fifth and sixth floor of new departure station building, podium parking, elevated road and air concourse have been taken up.

•           Aluabari Road station: The works of extension of platform no. 2, improvement of platform surface at platform no. 1 and 2, circulating area, parking, approach road and boundary wall have been completed. The works of 12 m wide foot over bridge, new station building block and improvement of platform shelter have been taken up.

•           New Farakka Junction station: The works of improvement of station building, waiting halls, toilet, entrance porch, signages and installation of Train Indication Board have been completed. The works of improvement of circulating area and parking have been taken up.

•           Barddhaman station: The works of new station building at second entry, entrance porch, waiting hall, booking counter, toilet, improvement of platform surface and platform shelters have been completed. The works of 6 m wide foot over bridge and improvement of circulating area have been taken up.

Further, development / redevelopment / upgradation / modernisation of stations on Indian Railways, is a continuous and ongoing process and works in this regard are undertaken as per requirement, subject to inter-se priority and availability of funds. Development / redevelopment / upgradation / modernisation of a station is carried out based on category of station/condition/traffic handled etc.

Development / upgradation / modernisation of stations including under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme is generally funded under Plan Head-53 ‘Customer Amenities’. The details of allocation and expenditure under Plan Head-53 are maintained Zonal Railway-wise and not station-wise or state-wise. West Bengal is covered under the jurisdiction of four railway zones, namely Eastern Railway, Northeast Frontier Railway, South Eastern Railway and Metro Railway. For these zones, an allocation of ₹ 1,231 crore has been made for the financial year 2026-27, out of which an expenditure (up to June, 2026) of ₹ 471 crore has been incurred so far.

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SSS/Kol/12.8.26…….

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