Harsimrat Badal urges railway minister to start rail link between Bidar-Nanded

BATHINDA: Bathinda MP and union food processing industries minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Wednesday urged union railway ministry to start the rail link between Bidar and Nanded as a gift to Sikh community commemorating the 550th Parkash Purab of first Sikh master Guru Nanak Dev ji as well as NDA Government’s commitment towards celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s birth anniversary at the national level.
Harsimrat Kaur Badal in a letter written to the union railway minister Piyush Goyal, said that during her recent visit to Nanded Sahib for inaugurating the Nanded-Jammu Hamsafar Express, people of Nanded represented that there is no direct train link connecting Nanded and Bidar. “You may be aware that Takht Sri Hazoor Sahib in Nanded is the historic place where Guru Gobind Singh Ji gave Gurta Gadi to Guru Granth Sahib ji. Also, Gurudwara Nanak Jhira Sahib in Bidar is the historic place associated with Guru Nanak Dev Ji” she said adding that Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee, Nanak Jhira Saheb, Bidar has also established an engineering college in Bidar near the Gurudwara premises.
Apprising the railway minister further Harsimrat Badal said that more than 3,000 pilgrims travel between Nanded and Bidar on a daily basis by road to visit both these historic places and absence of rail link hampers the travel of these pilgrims. She said that even the students of the surrounding areas can utilize the facility of this rail link to study in the engineering college at Bidar.
She also informed that earlier ex Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had written to the former Railway Minister as well, requesting the rail link between Nanded and Bidar. “I have been informed that the Railway Ministry has already finished the survey and project reports have been submitted to the Railway Ministry by the Member of Parliament, Bidar,” she said adding that this rail link will also help in facilitating the visit of pilgrims from Bidar to Nanded and then to Amritsar via the Nanded - Jammu Hamsafar Express, which will help pilgrims to pay obeisance at these religious places.
The union minister requested the railway minister that this matter may be accorded due importance and examined for starting this rail link between Bidar to Nanded at the earliest.