Our Bureau
New Delhi
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved five major infrastructure projects worth a combined Rs 13,041 crore, including four railway multitracking projects and a highway development project in Bihar. The decisions are aimed at expanding transport capacity, easing congestion and improving connectivity across key corridors.
The four railway projects, with a combined investment of about Rs 9,450 crore, will add additional tracks across sections of the railway network in Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Several of the projects will strengthen the Howrah-Chennai railway corridor, one of the important passenger and freight routes along India’s eastern coast.
The approved works include a fourth line between Kharagpur and Bhadrak, estimated to cost Rs 3,352 crore, and a fourth line between Bhadrak and Haridaspur, costing around Rs 1,583 crore. Additional third and fourth lines have also been cleared between Gummidipundi and Gudur, while similar multitracking work has been approved on the Cuttack-Paradeep section.
According to the government, the railway projects are expected to increase freight-handling capacity by around 13 million tonnes. The additional tracks are also expected to reduce congestion and improve the movement of both passenger and freight trains on busy routes.
The Cabinet also approved a Rs 3,590 crore highway project in Bihar involving the four-laning of an 82.6-km section of National Highway 22. The project is expected to improve road connectivity in the region and strengthen links towards the Nepal border.
The latest approvals form part of the government’s broader infrastructure expansion programme, with investments in rail and road networks intended to support regional connectivity, facilitate freight movement and improve transport efficiency.
The projects are expected to generate economic activity during construction while strengthening long-term transport infrastructure in the states covered by the approvals.