Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 351-km long New Bhaupur-New Khurja section of the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC) in Uttar Pradesh through video conferencing. The PM also inaugurated the EDFC’s Operation Control Centre (OCC) at Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh.
While talking about the numerous benefits of the dedicated freight corridors, PM Modi blamed the opposition and said that lack of investment in developing the infrastructure of the railways “show how the previous government before us used to work”.
“The plan to develop the dedicated freight corridors have been on paper since 2006 but the work started after 2014. Zero kilometres of the corridor was constructed in eight years, while in the last six to seven years we have built 1100 Kms,” the PM confronted.
He also stressed that “infrastructure” is the leading source of the nation’s development. The government has always focused on infrastructural development for the growth of the country, he added.
The project of the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor is an 1875-km stretch that joins Punjab’s Ludhiana to Dankuni in West Bengal. It is intended at decongesting the railway lines and to make the freightage of goods better and without any delays. The Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath claimed that the velocity of transportation trains will double from 25km/hour to 75km/hour.
While speaking on the occasion, PM Modi said, “After Independence we are witnessing the inauguration of the most advanced rail section in the country. The first goods train that will run on the New Bhaupur-Khurja section will give a message of the new ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ (self-reliant India) and the new operation control centre in Prayagraj is one of the best control centres in the world.”
The Western Dedicated Freight Corridor is also being developed, which will connect the 1506 km stretch from Mumbai to Uttar Pradesh’s Dadri. Counting the list of benefits, the PM said that the dedicated corridor will decrease the logistical cost of the railway network thus shaping the price of the goods. He added that it will boost the ease of doing business and attract better foreign investment.
