India News | Kerala Has Not Abandoned K-Rail Project, Says CM Vijayan
Get latest articles and stories on India at LatestLY. The Kerala government has not abandoned its ambitious semi-high-speed K-Rail project, but it cannot proceed without the Centre's approval, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said here on Wednesday.
Kottayam (Ker), Dec 13 (PTI) The Kerala government has not abandoned its ambitious semi-high-speed K-Rail project, but it cannot proceed without the Centre's approval, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said here on Wednesday.
Vijayan asserted that funding would not be an obstacle for implementing the multi-crore project, expressing the state's readiness to move forward if the Union government grants the necessary permission.
Also Read | Bengaluru Shocker: Hours After Mother's Death, Woman Dies by Suicide at Her Flat.
He clarified the state government's stance on the controversial issue during a meeting with selected individuals from various walks of life on the sidelines of the Nava Kerala Sadas programme in the district, a CMO statement said.
Former Supreme Court Judge Justice K T Thomas, one of the invitees, raised the issue of the K-Rail during the meeting, it said.
He wanted to implement the ambitious infrastructure project, even if there were objections.
While giving him a reply, Vijayan said the state has not abandoned the project, and his government would surely go ahead with the project if the Centre gives its permission.
The CM made it clear that the project has landed in trouble after political issues cropped up.
The state alone could not implement it on its own, and the Union government's sanction is mandatory for it, he explained.
Normally, the Union government should have given permission for the project, but certain "narrow minds" didn't allow for the same, the Left veteran said, without naming anyone.
The Southern Railway was asked to look into the implementation of the K-Rail (by the Centre) recently, but that too was found to be opposed, the CM added.
The Silver Line project would cover a 530-kilometre stretch from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasaragod and be developed by K-Rail, a joint venture of the Kerala government and the Ministry of Railways.
The semi-high-speed rail line planned to be constructed at an estimated cost of around Rs 64,000 crore would have 11 stations.
The project aims to ease transportation along the entire north-south of Kerala and reduce the travel time to less than four hours as against 12 to 14 hours.
The semi-high-speed rail project was opposed by parties, including the Congress and the BJP, as well as by the local people in some parts of the state.
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)