Ferozepur-Patti railway link issue taken up in Rajya Sabha
Anirudh Gupta
Ferozepur, December 1
The matter pertaining to the delay in connecting two strategically located border districts of Punjab — Ferozepur and Amritsar — through rail network that was snapped during Partition echoed in the Rajya Sabha when BJP MP and state party president Shwait Malik accused the state government of tardy land acquisition.
What’s the requirement
70 hectares required in Ferozepur and 95.68 hectares in Tarn Taran to construct this 25.47-km-long Ferozepur-Patti rail link
The link will shorten the distance between Ferozepur and Amritsar districts besides linking the state with the trade capitals of Gujarat and Maharashtra
Around 70 hectares of land is required in Ferozepur and 95.68 hectares in Tarn Taran to construct this 25.47-km-long Ferozepur-Patti rail link. The link will shorten the distance between the two neighbouring districts besides linking Punjab with the trade capitals of Gujarat and Maharashtra.
While speaking in the Upper House on Friday, Malik said while the Railways has agreed to spend an amount of Rs 299.74 lakh on this project, the state government is yet to acquire land. The district authorities in Ferozepur and Tarn Taran have completed the social impact assessment (SIA) to identify land in various villages. However, the process of land acquisition for this rail link has not been initiated due to paucity of funds. While the state government has to provide encumbrance free land for this rail link, the Railways will spend the rest of amount on the project which will include two overbridges too.
This track, when constructed, will connect two important regions of the state — Malwa and Majha. It will reduce the distance between Ferozepur and Amritsar from 118 Km to 86 km. Besides, the distance between Amritsar and Mumbai will be shortened by 240 km.
Earlier, this link (Ferozepur-Amritsar) was cut at the time of Partition when the province of Punjab was divided, following which a small portion from Ganda Singh Wala (now in Kasur) up to Khem Karan fell in the share of Pakistan, due to which an alternative portion (Ferozepur-Patti) needed to be built. In 2013, then Railways Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal had given a “green signal” to this project but it has been hanging in fire. Social worker Deepak Sharma said, “This rail link is vital to join the border districts of Ferozepur and Amritsar, besides connecting them to Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Gujarat to boost their economy.”
