CHANDIGARH: The Ambala railway division has missed the seventh deadline to complete the double-lane work of the Dappar-Chandigarh track, causing a delay in two major projects approved by the ministry for better connectivity between Chandigarh and New Delhi.
One of them is of increasing the speed of Shatabdi Express from 110kmph to 130 kmph. Speed of other trains too will increase once the double lane project is completed. Tejas train is the second project to be affected. The train will take 2 hours and 55 minutes to reach Delhi from Chandigarh. The Shatabdi takes 3 hours and 32 minutes. The Northern Railway has already announced the timetable of the Tejas train, but the slow double-lane work of the 23km track is acting as a barrier.
Dinesh Sharma, railway manager, Ambala division, said it was not possible to meet the December deadline owing to technical reasons. He said the track will be open for use in March 2018
In March this year, a trial run of a locomotive on the Dappar track and the newly-constructed bridge on the Ghaggar river had revealed that electrification of the section was incomplete. Nearly eight months later, it is yet to be finished. Sources said another reason for the delay was that Union railway minister Piyush Goyal had directed all division heads that track replacement and renewal should be accorded priority and work for constructing new lines diverted to places and stretches prone to accidents and where replacement is due. According to a report of the Ambala division, about 100km of tracks need to be replaced.
The 22km double-lane track between Dappar and Ambala Cantonment railway station has already been completed.
One of them is of increasing the speed of Shatabdi Express from 110kmph to 130 kmph. Speed of other trains too will increase once the double lane project is completed. Tejas train is the second project to be affected. The train will take 2 hours and 55 minutes to reach Delhi from Chandigarh. The Shatabdi takes 3 hours and 32 minutes. The Northern Railway has already announced the timetable of the Tejas train, but the slow double-lane work of the 23km track is acting as a barrier.
Dinesh Sharma, railway manager, Ambala division, said it was not possible to meet the December deadline owing to technical reasons. He said the track will be open for use in March 2018
In March this year, a trial run of a locomotive on the Dappar track and the newly-constructed bridge on the Ghaggar river had revealed that electrification of the section was incomplete. Nearly eight months later, it is yet to be finished. Sources said another reason for the delay was that Union railway minister Piyush Goyal had directed all division heads that track replacement and renewal should be accorded priority and work for constructing new lines diverted to places and stretches prone to accidents and where replacement is due. According to a report of the Ambala division, about 100km of tracks need to be replaced.
The 22km double-lane track between Dappar and Ambala Cantonment railway station has already been completed.
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