Rly panel meets Puttur MLA

Mangaluru: A delegation of Railway Action Committee from Kerala met Puttur MLA Ashok Kumar Rai, requesting him to discuss proposed railway project connecting Kanhangad in Kasaragod district to Kaniyoor in Puttur with CM Siddaramaiah.
In 2008, the railway ministry approved the proposed Kanhangad-Kaniyoor railway line. A DPR was prepared and the central govt needs to allocate a budget of Rs 1,350 crore. Of this, Kerala and Karnataka need to pool in Rs 650 crore each on a 50:50 grant basis. The Kerala govt agreed to give the share, but discussions with the Karnataka govt regarding the grant have not yet taken place. Talks with the Karnataka govt are scheduled for next week, during which the Railway Action Committee and MLA Rai will jointly meet with CM Siddaramaiah for discussions, MLA Rai said.
This 91-km long railway line will connect Kanhangad through Meenoth, Kottodi, Balathodu, Panathur, Kallapalli, Sullia, Bellare, and Kaniyoor. The central govt, along with the Kerala and Karnataka govts, will jointly undertake this project. "Once implemented, this project will serve as a link between Kerala and Karnataka, benefiting travellers to Subrahmanya and Bengaluru," he said.
The delegation from the Action Committee included Bettu Jayaram, advocate M C Josh, A Hameed Haji, Surya Narayana Bhat, Kunhikkannan and Mohammad.