Shimla, Feb 22 (Inditop.com) Railway projects in Himachal Pradesh should be completed on a priority basis, state Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said Monday.
“We again request the railway ministry to complete the pending railway projects in the state on a priority basis. I have already met the prime minister and the railway minister in this regard a number of times,” Dhumal told reporters here.
“We are demanding early completion of the Bhanupalli-Bilaspur-Beri, Chandigarh-Baddi, Nangal-Talwara and Bilaspur-Manali-Leh rail lines,” he said.
“For the Bhanupalli-Bilaspur-Beri line, the state has deposited Rs.25 crore with the railways this (financial) year and Rs.37 crore last year, but no work has started so far,” the chief minister said.
Regarding the construction of the 460 km Bilaspur-Manali-Leh rail line, he said: “The rail line would provide an all-weather connectivity to tribal areas of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir (that remain cut off for over eight months a year due to snowfall). It’s also strategically important from the defence point of view.”
