In what could be a massive relief to passengers, Indian Railways has approved the construction of a third rail line between Champa and Korba in Chhattisgarh. The estimated cost of this entire project comes to Rs 750 crore.
As per the Railway Ministry, this 42-km project falls under the South East Central Railway zone and was cleared as a part of the ministry’s Mission 3000 MT and High-Density Network initiatives.
The ministry further noted that this section currently handles around 55 pairs of freight trains and 10 pairs of passenger trains every day.
Why has Indian Railways approved the Champa-Korba third line?
Korba, often referred to as the power capital of India, is home to several large thermal power plants and sits at the heart of the country’s coal distribution network. As per PIB data, the Champa Korba line connects the South Eastern Coalfields and Mahanadi Coalfields to the rail grid, including the Mumbai-Howrah high-density corridor.
The combined coal production capacity of SECL and MCL currently stands at around 247 million tonnes per annum (MTPA), the ministry noted. That number is projected to climb to nearly 450 MTPA, an increase of roughly 200 MTPA, which would make the existing infrastructure untenable without intervention.
How many additional trains can run on the Champa-Korba route?
The additional track is expected to move 5.95 MTPA of extra freight traffic once operational. It will also allow for two more passenger trains in each direction daily, providing relief on a route where both freight and passenger services have competed for the same limited track space.
Freight trains on the section currently face average delays of around five minutes in each direction. With the third line coming up, the operational savings for the Railways will come to approximately Rs 1.3 crore annually.
On the revenue side, Indian Railways expects the project to generate net annual earnings of around Rs 85 crore. This includes Rs 82 crore from freight and the remaining Rs 3 crore from passenger services.
Why is Indian Railways investing in high-traffic corridors?
The HDN programme, under which this project has been sanctioned, targets sections where traffic density is high enough to justify major capital investment. The Madwarani-Saragbundia sub-section has already been sanctioned separately and is excluded from this approval. No timeline for completion has been officially announced yet.