Bihar’s rail infra to completely transform? New line projects, Vande Bharat trains hint towards a new dawn

Bihar was allotted a whopping amount of Rs 8,505 crore in the railway budget for fiscal 2023-24. One has to keep in mind that this budget is nearly seven times more than the railway budget allotted to the state in the past. Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had earlier stated that about 87 stations will be redeveloped in Bihar giving the state’s rail infra a modern twist. For those unaware, Bihar is currently working on improving its rail infra through a lot of projects that are underway and should see completion soon enough, trnaforming the state for a better tomorrow.

Neora-Daniyawan & Barbigha-Sheikhpura New Line Project

With an estimated cost of Rs 1563 crore, the Indian Railways is constructing new line project between Neora-Daniyawan & Barbigha-Sheikhpura. The project’s physical progress has already reached 67.46%, as per Ministry of Railways. The line will facilitate the reduction of load on Patna-Kiul Mainline.

Redevelopment of 87 railway stations

As many as 87 stations are reported to be redeveloped into world-class railway stations under the Amrit Bharat Stations scheme. These stations include Patna, Danapur, Rajgir and Jehanabad. The East Central Railway (ECR) authorities had earlier said that Rs 296 crore of the total budget will be provided to Gaya, Rs 442 crore to Muzaffarpur, Rs 221 crore to Motihari and Rs 262 crore for Sitamarhi for renovation of stations and other projects. These stations will be equipped with modern facilities for passengers.

Three new Vande Bharat Express trains in April

The Vande Bharat Express train from New Jalpaiguri to Howrah gathered a lot of attention on its launch. Now, it is reported that three news Vande Bharat Express trains will be introduced on Patna-Howrah, Patna-Ranchi and Varanasi-Howrah via Gaya routes from April this year.

Bihar’s capital Patna and Jharkhand’s capital Ranchi will be connected by Vande Bharat Express, as per the Union Budget announcement. If the train is launched, the travel time between the two cities will reduce to just 4 hours. The railway track for Vande Bharat Express train on the Patna to Howrah route, will be toughened and stregnthened so that it is suitable to run high-speed trains. The Vande Bharat train from Varanasi in UP to Howrah will run via Gaya.

Gauge conversion and construction of new rail lines

According to the Union Budget, funds have already been allocated for constructing new railway lines on the following routes: Gaya-Bodhgaya-Chatra, Bihta-Aurangabad via Anugrahnarayan Road, Araria-Galgalia, Gaya-Natesar, Gaya- Daltonganj via Rafiganj, Rajgir-Hisua-Tilaiya & Natesar-Islampur, Fatuha-Ismalpur-Neora-Daniyawan-Biharsharif-Barbigha-Sheikhpura, Koderma-Tilaiya, Hajipur-Sagauli via Vaishali, Araria-Supaul, Sakri-Hasanpur and Chapra-Muzaffarpur, among others.

Apart from the new lines, a lot of manpower is going to devoted to gauge conversion work that might be taken up on routes including Jayanagar-Darbhanga-Narkatiaganj and Mansi-Saharsa- Madhepura-Purnia.