Suresh Prabhu allocates Token Money for Jeypore-Nabarangpur Rail Lines

In a land mark initiative, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu has allocated a token money of Rs 2 lakh for newly proposed Jeypore-Nabarangpur rail lines. While presenting the budget on Friday, the Railway Minister has proposed eight new lines for Odisha including Jeypore-Nabarangpur, Jeypore-Malkangiri, Berhampur Sambalpur, Junagarh-Ambaguda via Nabarangpur, Bansapani-Badabil, Barsuan-Bansapani, Bandhamunda-Rourkela and Narayangarh-Bhadrak.

Railway connection to tribal dominant Nabarangpur district has been a long standing demand from the people of the district. BJD leader and Lok Sabha MP Balabhadra Majhi had made the railway issue as his primary concern in his election manifesto in 2014 general election.

Odisha Transport Minister Ramesh Majhi has also played a crucial role in the proposed 38 km-long Jeypore- Nabarangpur rail-link as the state government has agreed to bear the required land cost and fifty percent of the construction cost.

While talking to ONI, Congress leader and former MP Pradeep Majhi said, “It is good news that Jeypore Nabarangpur railway link was placed in the Railway budget. However, sum of two lakh rupees is too little to serve the purpose.”

“Earlier, the Congress government had sanctioned as much as twenty-eight lakh rupees to conduct a survey work for the railway connection to Nabarangpur district”, added the congress leader.  Notably, Odisha received the highest-ever allocation of 4,682 crore rupees against its demand of 5,000 crore rupees in the Railway budget presented by Railway Minister.