CCEA approves doubling of Ballari-Chikjajur railway line

New Delhi: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Wednesday approved the doubling of the Ballari-Chikjajur railway line with an investment of Rs 3,342 crore.

Announcing this, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that the 185 km line traverses through Ballari and Chitradurga districts of Karnataka and Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh.

The project is a result of the PM-Gati Shakti National Master Plan for multi-modal connectivity, which has been possible through integrated planning and will provide seamless connectivity for the movement of people, goods, and services, the minister said.

The railway line has 19 stations and connects 470 villages on the route. The doubling of the line will help to facilitate faster movements of commodities, including coal, iron ore, finished steel, cement, fertilizers, agricultural commodities, and Petroleum products.

The Cabinet also approved the doubling of the Koderma – Barkakana (133 km) line in Jharkhand with an investment of Rs 3,063 crore.