Cabinet Clears Rs 10,783 Crore Multi-Tracking Railway Projects Across Five States to Boost Freight and Connectivity

In a major infrastructure push aimed at eliminating supply chain bottlenecks across central and eastern India, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved three multi-tracking railway projects with an aggregate capital outlay of Rs 10,783 crore.

Covering 14 districts across five states—West Bengal, Jharkhand, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh—the newly sanctioned projects will add approximately 656 route kilometres to the Indian Railways network. All three projects have been planned under the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan and are slated for completion by FY 2029-30.

Key Project Breakdown:

• Kharagpur – Jharsuguda (Bagdehi) 4th Line: Expands critical east-central rail connectivity linking major industrial hubs.
• Katni – Pendra Road 4th Line: Augments capacity across busy central transit sections serving coalfields and industrial plants.
• Bilaspur (Uslapur) – Pendra Road 3rd Line: Eases operational bottlenecks along key passenger and freight routes in Chhattisgarh.

Boosting Freight Capacity and Logistics Efficiency

Announcing the decision, Union Minister for Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw highlighted that the multi-tracking proposals are designed to ease congestion on high-density routes, ensuring higher punctuality for passenger trains and faster turnaround times for freight traffic.

The expanded corridors will provide critical transit capacity for essential bulk commodities, primarily coal, iron ore, steel, and cement. The infrastructure upgrade is projected to generate an incremental freight traffic volume of 27 million tonnes per annum (MTPA).

By shifting substantial bulk freight movement from road to rail, the initiatives are expected to bring down logistics costs nationwide, save roughly 12 crore litres in crude oil imports, and cut carbon dioxide emissions by an estimated 62 crore kilograms.

Socio-Economic and Regional Impact

Beyond industrial freight, the projects will expand passenger access to nearly 4,790 villages inhabited by roughly 56 lakh people across the five states.

The corridor enhancements will also support tourism and pilgrimage traffic, strengthening connectivity to notable cultural and ecological sites such as the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve, Achanakmar Tiger Reserve, Amarkantak Temple, Taratarini Temple, and the Ratanpur Mahamaya Temple.

Tags: Indian Railways Ministry of Railways CCEA Infrastructure Sector Logistics PM Gati Shakti