Indian Railways’ proposal to double the broad gauge line between Palanpur and Samakhiali has received government backing.
The 248 km line, which comes under the Western Railway (WR) zone, will be developed at a cost of $235 million and is likely to be completed in next five years during the 13th plan period.
The doubling will benefit the districts of Kutch, Patan and Banaskantha in the state of Gujarat.
“The doubling of Palanpur-Samakhiali project is an operational requirement to ensure smooth passage of goods and passenger trains through the section. It will also provide necessary infrastructure support for industrial development in the state of Gujarat,” said the Ministry of Railways.
Presently, Palanpur-Samakhiali is an existing broad gauge single line section on the Palanpur-Samakhiali-Gandhidham broad gauge route, which was recently converted from meter gauge to broad gauge and after conversion.
However, there has been a double line from Samakhiali to Gandhidham. But, the Palanpur-Samakhiali section is still a single line and therefore, is a bottleneck.
Since the Palanpur-Samakhiali-Gandhidham section is a feeder route of the Western Railway to the Dedicated Freight Corridor of Mumbai-Delhi, and considering the quantum of traffic on this route, it has become essential to double the Palanpur-Samakhiali section also, the statement added.
