Freight corridor may boost State infrastructure

The Chennai-Goa corridor project likely to generate employment

The railway minister announced the project while presenting the budget on Friday.
The ministry, which is planning to unveil a new policy to execute this project under Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mode, is expected to invest over Rs 35,000 crore in it. 

Industrial hubs

As per the proposals, the corridor will cover major industrial hubs like Sriperumbudur, Ranipet, Hosur, Bangalore, Davangere, Hubli-Dharwad and Belgaum. It is similar to the one the railways is planning to build between Mumbai and Delhi. The corridor will have a dedicated railway line and six-lane highways to ensure seamless movement of freights.
All along the corridor, industrial hubs, logistic parks, mega power plants, integrated townships, Special Economic Zones and information technology parks will come up.
It will also lead to the development of the neighbourhood within a radius of about 20 to 25 km, a senior official in the railway ministry told Deccan Herald here. 

The Karnataka government is also a partner in the project and  will have to take steps to acquire land and other related activities.

The government, in its recent proposal to the Centre, had promised to provide all help, including the acquisition of land for the project.

The railways has set up a special purpose vehicle, Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India (DFCCIL), to undertake planning and development, mobilisation of financial resources and construction, maintenance and operation of the project.  

Though the Karnataka government was keen to take the corridor to Mumbai, the railways is conducting a study to touch the Goa port, said the official.  

“The corridor would give impetus to niche areas and help in the promotion of engineering services in a big way, apart from effectively leveraging the strength of the IT and electronics industry in south India,” a senior official in the Planning Commission who is part of preparing the blue print of the project, said.

DH News Service