PM Gati Shakti Drives Massive 410 Km Railway Expansion
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has sanctioned four major multitracking projects for Indian Railways with a total investment of ₹9,450 crore. Designed under the PM-Gati Shakti National Master Plan, this strategic initiative aims to remove critical bottlenecking, enhance multi-modal connectivity, and reduce operational delay across high-density rail corridors.
Spanning eight districts across West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu, the projects will expand the rail network by 410 kilometers, directly serving over 6,448 villages and an estimated 60 lakh inhabitants.
Approved Railway Corridors:
- Kharagpur – Bhadrak (Ranital) 4th Line: 173 km (West Bengal & Odisha)
- Bhadrak – Haridaspur 4th Line: 75 km (Odisha)
- Gummidipundi – Gudur 3rd & 4th Line: 90 km (Andhra Pradesh & Tamil Nadu)
- Cuttack – Paradeep (Badabandha) 3rd & 4th Line: 72 km (Odisha)
Economic and Environmental Impact
The capacity augmentation works will facilitate an additional freight traffic load of 76 million tonnes per annum (MTPA). These routes serve as essential lifelines for transporting key bulk commodities including coal, iron ore, steel, cement, containers, and food grains.
Beyond logistics efficiency, shifting heavy freight movement to energy-efficient rail routes will slash foreign oil imports by approximately 13 crore liters and reduce CO₂ emissions by 65 crore kg—a green footprint equivalent to planting 2.60 crore trees. Target project completion is slated for 2030-31.