Konkan Railway to increase connectivity, build eight new stations

Mumbai: Konkan Railway (KR) has promised that it will double its connectivity to Maharashtra and build at least eight new stations to expand network in the next five years. Relaxation of its equity share will allow it the freedom to choose sections to prioritise work.

KR chief managing director Sanjay Gupta in the afternoon on Friday made the promise. KR has seen an increase in earnings by 28 per cent in 2016-17 as compared to the previous year and is infused with positivity because of this. By contrast, contemporaries Central and Western Railway (CR and WR) have seen a loss of Rs 700 and Rs 600 crore, respectively. KR has presented a five-year plan where electrification of its entire line and the Karan-Chiplun railway link is first to be completed. Mr Gupta said, “Other than these two works, partial doubling of Roha-Veer and doubling of traffic capacity of the entire Konkan will be next projects but the most herculean task will be construction of additional loop lines and new crossing stations on our line.”

KR is a 741 km line connecting Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka and has been doing so on a single line when it was fully commissioned in its current form back in 1998.

KR’s official statement reads, “The pace of development could not catch as (on KR) expected due to lack of fund infusion which will lead to capacity constraints.”