Jammu: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the newly created Jammu railway division through virtual mode on Monday, paving the way for efficient management of train services in the northernmost region of India.
With the establishment of the new railway division in Jammu, a long-standing demand of people of the region has been fulfilled. This milestone event comes ahead of the much-awaited inauguration of train services to Kashmir from Katra, with the final trial run scheduled for Tuesday.
“The Prime Minister will inaugurate the Jammu railway division through virtual mode from New Delhi tomorrow,” an official said.
In Jammu, the event will be attended and addressed by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and Member of Parliament Jugal Kishore Sharma. Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh is also expected to participate.
Headquartered in Jammu, the newly created division will involve the reorganization of the Firozpur Division. It will include the following sections under its jurisdiction, including Pathankot-Jammu-Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla (423 route km), Bhogpur-Sirwal-Pathankot (87.21 route km), Batala (excluding)-Pathankot (68.17 route km) and Pathankot-Joginder Nagar (narrow gauge section, 163.72 route km).
The total length of these sections will be 742.1 kilometres. Presently, the Indian Railways operates 17 zones with 68 divisions across the country.
The Railway officials said the final jurisdiction will be determined based on the Detailed Project Report.
The division will feature modern, hi-tech facilities, leveraging the full potential of Information Technology (IT), they said.
With the creation of this division, the Indian Railways will now have 70 divisions under its 17 zones.
The newly established division will oversee operations on India’s iconic rail projects, including the country’s first cable-stayed rail bridge, the Anji Khad Bridge and the world’s highest railway arch.
He will also inaugurate the Charlapalli New Terminal Station in Telangana and lay the foundation stone of Rayagada Railway Division Building of East Coast Railway.
PIB in a press statement said that the creation of the Jammu Railway Division, with 742.1 KM comprising Pathankot – Jammu – Udhampur – Srinagar – Baramulla, Bhogpur Sirwal – Pathankot, Batala – Pathankot and Pathankot to Joginder Nagar sections, will significantly benefit Jammu and Kashmir and surrounding regions, fulfilling the long pending aspiration of the people and improving connectivity to other parts of India. It will create employment opportunities, infrastructure development, promote tourism and lead to overall socio-economic development of the region.
Charlapalli New Terminal Station in the Medchal-Malkajgiri District of Telangana has been developed as a new coaching terminal along with provision of second entry with a cost of around Rs 413 crore. This environment friendly terminal, having good passenger amenities, will ease congestion on the existing coaching terminals in the city like Secunderabad, Hyderabad and Kacheguda.
Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone for Rayagada Railway Division Building of East Coast Railway. It will improve connectivity in Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and nearby areas and lead to overall socio-economic development of the region.