Nagpur: Around 90% of the land required for the Wardha-Yavatmal-Nanded broad gauge railway line has been acquired and now state government will request the railway ministry to start the tender process. The progress of the land acquisition process was reviewed by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in his war room on Monday. A source in chief minister’s office (CMO) said that if Railways shows promptness, work on the project could start in eight to nine months.
The length of the line is 284km and it needs 722 hectares of land. It will pass through six tehsils and 90 villages in Wardha, Yavatmal, Washim, Hingoli and Nanded districts. It was granted a special project status in July 2016. The main problem with the line so far was land acquisition.
When the line is commissioned it will provide direct connectivity between Nagpur and Marathwada. Today the train journey between Nagpur and Nanded takes over 12 hours and very few travel by train between the two cities.
The source further said that Wadsa-Gadchiroli railway line was also discussed in the meeting. “There are some issues related to land acquisition. The CM issued necessary directives to Gadchiroli district collector,” he added.
According to the official the land acquisition for Ahmednagar-Beed-Parli railway line was complete and construction could begin on it by the year end.
The ambitious Nagpur-Mumbai communication super-expressway, also known as Samruddhi Mahamarg, was discussed in the meeting. District collectors told Fadnavis that except for Nashik and Thane districts, land acquisition in other districts was over 90% complete.
“The problem with the two districts is the high cost of land. We faced some problems in negotiating with farmers but they have been sorted out,” said the source.
Commenting on financial closure, the official said that it was not a problem as land was being securitized for bank loans. “We expect financial closure to take place soon,” he added.
Nagpur and Pune Metro projects were also reviewed by the CM. According to data submitted by the war room, Nagpur Metro work is 60% complete. The deadline for completing it is December 2019. About 15% work of Pune Metro is over. Its deadline is September 2021.