Selja seeks Sirsa-Delhi intercity train to aid traders

Sirsa MP Kumari Selja has urged the Railway Ministry to immediately start an Intercity Express or Vande Bharat train on the Sirsa-Delhi rail route to benefit common passengers, especially traders.

In a media statement on Monday, Selja said the rail line was formally inaugurated in 2013 during the Congress-led UPA government by the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The project was planned keeping in mind future needs, trade activities and passenger convenience in the region. “Now that the rail line is fully ready, passenger train services should begin without delay,” she said.

She said traders, salaried employees and students from Sirsa, Hisar and nearby areas have long been demanding a train service that allows them to travel to Delhi in the morning and return the same evening. Selja added that the timings of existing trains do not meet daily travel needs.

“If a fast and modern train like an Intercity Express or Vande Bharat is introduced on this route, it will make travel easier and boost trade, economic growth and employment in the region,” she said. Better rail connectivity, she added, is directly linked to the social and economic development of the area.

Concern over rising diseases in Ghaggar belt

Selja also expressed serious concern over rising cases of cancer, kidney and skin diseases in more than 50 villages located along the Ghaggar river in Sirsa district. She said hundreds of patients were identified during a survey conducted in 2022, but no regular health check-ups or permanent treatment arrangements have been made since then. Selja said she has raised the issue in Parliament and written several times to the Centre, highlighting risks related to health, drinking water and the environment in the affected villages. “It is unfortunate that no concrete steps have been taken so far,” she said, questioning whether public health is a priority for the BJP-led government. She demanded immediate steps to provide clean drinking water, regular medical screenings and permanent treatment facilities in the affected areas, saying the issue directly affects the lives of lakhs of people.