Chandigarh, Feb 13 – Haryana Chief Minister Mr. Manohar Lal said that alongwith the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal Expressway, Detailed Project Report (DPR) is being prepared for rail connectivity from Palwal to Sonipat. This is going to be a kind of economic corridor.

The Chief Minister was in the outreach event organised for discussion with stakeholders on 'Haryana Orbital Rail Corridor Project from Palwal to Sonipat' by the Haryana Rail Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (HRIDC), at Gurugram today.

He said that all the states of the country had to establish Joint Venture Company alongwith Union Railways Ministry to develop Rail Infrastructure through cooperative federalism. In this, Haryana has taken lead in the country and constituted HRIDC, which is a Joint Venture Company of the Union Ministry of Railways and the Haryana Government. He said that in the last four years, the present State Government has taken note of infrastructure in the state.

The Chief Minister said HRIDC has created Haryana Orbital Rail Corridor Project to lay new railway line from Palwal to Sonipat for which DPR is being prepared. A sum of about Rs 4,100 crore will be spent on the project which is about 130 km long and this project will be completed in three years.

He said that all the stakeholders will have to mobilize the cost of this corridor together. Apart from the Haryana Government, the Stakeholders included Indian Railways, Maruti Suzuki, Dedicated Freight Corridor, HSIIDC, Model Economic Township Limited (formerly Reliance Haryana SEZ Limited), All Cargo and other industries and financial institutions. He said that the setting up of the Orbital Rail Corridor, the Shatabadi train will pass through cities of Gurgaum and Faridabad and reach Chandigarh and it will not have to enter Delhi. He said that presently people from Gurugram or Faridabad have to board Shatabadi train to Chandigarh from Delhi.

Manohar Lal said that the Haryana Orbital Rail Corridor Project would provide direct rail connectivity to main cities of Haryana such as Gurugram, Faridabad, Ballabhgarh, Palwal, Manesar and it will accelerate industrial development in Sohna, Manesar, Gurugram, Rohtak, Bahadurgarh and Kundli.. These industrial cities will be interconnected which will benefit huge population.

He said that through HRIDC, feasibility study is being conducted for laying the new railway from Yamunanagar to Chandigarh via Naraingarh-Sadhora, Sohna-Nuh-Alwar, Farukhnagar-Jhajjar-Charkhi Dadri, Karnal-Yamunanagar, Jind-Hisar and Bhiwani-Loharu.

Others present on the occasion included Additional Principal Secretary to Chief Minister, Mr. V. Umashankar, Media Advisor to Chief Minister, Mr. Amit Arya, Additional Chief Secretary, Public Works (Building and Roads) Department, Mr. Alok Nigam, Executive Director of Railway Board, Mr. Harpal Singh, Deputy Commissioner, Mr. Vinay Pratap Singh, Managing Director of HSIIDC, Dr. Narhari Singh Banger and other dignitaries.