With new govt in State, new railway zone could soon become a reality

Visakhapatnam: After a long wait, the work of the new South Coast Railway Zone with Visakhapatnam as its headquarters is likely to pick up pace.

During the YSRCP’s rule, land was not allocated for the construction of the new railway zone. If the land was allocated, the new railway zone operations would have been operational by now.

The YSRCP government earmarked 52 acres of land at Arilova. Of them, 30 acres of land were mired in dispute. Meanwhile, locals raised objections when the railway authorities tried to commence the work.

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, who has been making allocations for the railways in three consecutive budgets, stated that the Andhra Pradesh government has not allocated the required land for the purpose. He expressed concern over it repeatedly in several media conferences.

The Minister of Railways attended a number of inauguration programmes in the East Coast Railway Zone and the Waltair Division, pointing out that it is clear that there are disputes and that the site proposed by the YSRCP government in the past is not suitable for the construction purpose.

He announced that the Centre is ready to start the work within 24 hours if the required land is allocated.

However, the previous YSRCP government has completely neglected to allocate an alternative site. The then YSRCP ministers used to indulge in counter attack by blaming the BJP for the delay. They used to allege that the Central government was neglecting the project even after allocating the land. The YSRCP government in the State and the BJP government at the Centre blamed each other for the past five years and the new railway zone failed to inch forward.

After the Jana Sena, BJP and TDP alliance government came to power in the State after the recent Assembly elections, discussion over the new railway zone has gained momentum.

Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu, who has taken charge as the Civil Aviation Minister, has already discussed various issues with Waltair Division DRM Saurabh Prasad on the issue of a new railway zone.

The Union Minister assured them that they would allocate a suitable land at the earliest. Rammohan Naidu has often voiced his opinion on railway issues even when as an MP during his earlier tenures.

With the involvement of the Union Minister, everyone hopes that the work related to the railway zone will speed up now.

Moreover, it is expected that the participation of Andhra Pradesh in the NDA government at the Centre will have all sorts of benefits and the pending projects are expected to commence soon.