Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Saturday expressed reservations over setting up of a new South Coast Railway (SCoR) zone recently declared by Railway Minister Piyush Goyal.
In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Naveen said he got know about setting up of the SCoR zone by carving out part of the East Coast Railway’s Waltier Division from media reports and it had come as a rude shock to the people of Odisha.
The Chief Minister sought his intervention to declare two new Railway Divisions at Rourkela and Jajpur to unify Railways in Odisha under one administrative Zonal Headquarters of ECoR, Bhubaneswar. “Till such time, I would request in the interest of the people of Odisha, not to operationalise the declared SCoR at Visakhapatnam which has been done without consultation with Odisha,” he said.
Naveen said that he had been writing to successive Ministers of Railways of the then UPA It Government and the present NDA Government regarding Odisha’s demand for re-organisation of Railways in Odisha with three new Divisions.
He said that an efficient and strong Railway network with a single administrative structure within the state is necessary to maintain the impetus of growth.
“Currently, about 70% of Odisha is under the jurisdiction of the ECoR with its headquarters at Bhubaneswar. The state has the maximum resources of almost all major minerals like coal, iron ore, bauxite and manganese or with our thrust on industrialisation and Make in Odisha, we have been able to add value to these minerals within the State. Odisha is the highest producer of Steel and Aluminium in the country. With successful operationalisation of Power Plants, Ports and other key infrastructure, industrial output and growth has seen a tremendous increase,” he said.
The Chief Minister further said that major minerals like iron ore and coal are under Zonal Railways outside of Odisha. “My Government has also come forward to invest heavily to bridge the gap in investment in Railway Infrastructure, as in Haridaspur—Paradip and Angul – Sukinda new lines. The slate has provided land free of cost for Khurda Road – Bolangir, Jeypore – Malkangiri, Jeypore – Nabarangpur Projects. The commitment of my Government to Railway Projects stands today in excess of Rs.5000 crores, signifying our focus and priority to this sector,” he said.
Against this backdrop, Odisha has been asking for re-organisation of Railways in Odisha and unifying the Railways in the State under one administrative Zone – ECoR, Bhubaneswar, Naveen stressed.
“As Government of India has created the SCoR considering the geographical area of the State, the similar demand of Odisha may be considered likewise,” he added.
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