Rail connectivity improves in Uttarakhand under Double engine govt

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami led Uttarakhand government has given emphasis on rail connectivity in the state. In order to improve rail connectivity in 4 districts namely Tehri, Pauri, Rudraprayag & Chamoli, he announced extension of Rishikesh Rail line to Karnaprayag.

Under the Rishikesh-Karnaprayag rail link, 12 new railway stations will be constructed by RVNL (Rail Vikas Nigam Limited). These 12 new stations will be constructed in Dehradun, Srinagar, Tehri, Shivpuri & Byasi (4 in Tehri district), Devprayag and Dhari Devi (2 in Pauri district), Rudraprayag and Gholtir (2 in Rudraprayag district) and Gauchar & Karnaprayag (2 in Chamoli district).

This 125 km long railway project will extend rail connectivity to the hilly areas of Garhwal and will also improve pilgrim connectivity to the Chardham Yatra. CM Dhami also got approval from Union Railway Minister Shri Ashwini Vaishnav to run Vande Bharat high-speed train from Dehradun to Anand Vihar in Delhi. The tarin will start running from Dehradun from 26 March.

CM Dhami also got 3 special ‘Aastha trains’ to be run from Dehradun, Rishikesh & Haridwar to Ayodhya to ensure that pilgrims from Uttarakhand are able to visit Shri ram Mandir easily. The ‘Aastha train’ from Dehradun started functioning from 21 January, from Rishikesh from 8 February & from Haridwar from 15 February.

All these trains will return on the very next day of their departure. CM Dhami said that these trains will also help tourists from Ayodhya to visit various tourist destinations of Uttarakhand, specially the Chardham Yatra. This in-turn, will help in earning revenue from the tourism industry. He said that it will also help industrialists & businessmen in transporting various good from Uttarakhand to UP (Uttar Pradesh) and back. Better rail connectivity in Uttarakhand will also help industrialists in setting up industrial units in hilly areas of Uttarakhand as they will be able to transport raw materials easily from Uttar Pradesh to Uttarakhand.

In a bid to give filip to religious tourism in Kumaon region, CM Dhami is also working to start a special train called ‘Manaskhand Express’ that will travel to 16 important temples that are part of the Manaskhand Mandir Mala Mission. Not just that, the state tourism department will also provide accommodation facilities for tourists in government guest houses, private homestays & hotels near all 16 temples. Some of the 16 renowned temples include Purnagiri, Hatkalika, Patal Bhubaneswar, Jageshwardham, Golju Devta Temple, Nanda Devi and Kainchi Dham. These temples will also be renovated & developed to attract tourists.