Target to complete Jharsuguda-Barpali rail project by December 2017.

With the public sector Coal India Limited (CIL) targeting one billion tonne coal production by 2019, the Centre and Odisha governments today jointly resolved to ensure completion of Jharsuguda-Barpali railway link project by December 2017.

'The proposed railway line project between Jharsuguda and Barpali connecting different coal mines of Odisha needs to be completed by December 2017,' Union Coal Secretary Anil Swarup told reporters after a review of 15 projects.

Stating that the 53-km-long Jharsuguda-Barpali railway link was significant as it would connect most of the coal mines in Odisha, Swarup pointed out that CIL has set a target of producing 1,000 million tonnes of coal by 2019, while Mahanadi Coalfield Limited (MCL) also aimed at increasing its output to 200 million tonnes from 110 million tonnes.

The Jharsuguda-Barpali Rail link project is a part of the three inter-state rail corridor projects proposed by CIL, which are dedicated to coal evacuation in Maoist-affected areas of Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.

Two other projects are the 93 km azaribagh-Shivpur-Tori-Kathotia rail corridor project and the 180 km Bhupdeopur-Korichhapar-Baroud rail link project.

'We are happy that the Odisha rail project has progressed a lot in comparison to the two other projects in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand,' Swarup said.


ET