Bhubaneswar, May 26: The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved a third line between Vizianagaram and Titlagarh at an estimated cost of Rs.2,335.68 crore.
The 264.4 km line will be completed in five years.
The third line will help ease traffic on the existing two tracks and open an alternative route to oversaturated Kharagpur–Jharsuguda section’s Howrah-Mumbai Grand Trunk Route and Howrah-Chennai section main line.
Rayagada and Kalahandi districts of Odisha and Vizianagaram and Babbili districts of Andhra Pradesh will benefit through this project, officials said.
Notably, Vizianagaram and Titlagarh is a double line non electrified section of Jharsuguda-Vizianagaram line. The section is oversaturated with present capacity utilization of 106% and there is a huge detention to rolling stock.
The average number of trains handled per day is 47 trains each way which includes 27 pairs of passenger trains and 20 pairs of Goods train.
After industrialization between Jharsuguda-Rengali, and Talcher-Angul-Dhenkanal, 3rd line between Vizianagaram and Titlagarh had become necessary to overcome the goods traffic likely in the near future.
