Pact on TARN to connect 28 nations through rail link
The Indian Railways recently signed an inter-governmental agreement on Trans Asian Railway Network (TARN). This agreement on TARN has been approved under the aegis of the United National Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific (UNESCAP). This dream project is likely to cost about Rs 3,000 crore to the Indian Railways in particular.
According to Railway Board media director Manish Tiwary, the approved plan intends to connect 28 countries through rail link. They include India, China, Myanmar, Thailand, Singapore, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Turkey, Russia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Bulgaria, Mongolia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal. Patna is one of the routes internationally approved in the agreement which was signed by the Indian Railways on behalf of the government at UNO headquarters in New York this year, he said.
The agreement has identified the railway lines of international importance, including the missing links. The missing link in India has been identified from Jiribam to Tamu in Manipur. According to the feasibility study carried out by Rail India Technical and Economic Services (RITES), the construction of this missing link is estimated to cost about Rs 2,941 crore to the railways. The railway ministry has decided to construct about 97 km new rail link between Jiribam and Tupul near Imphal in the first phase of the work. A sum of over Rs 727 crore has been sanctioned for it by the railways, a board official said.
According to sources, this project will be completed in about 20 years from now. Each country has been asked to build rail network within its own jurisdiction as per the Busan (Korea) agreement. The Indian Railways are required to build about 350 km new route between India and Myanmar at an estimated cost of Rs 3,000 crore, sources said, adding the total length will be of about 22,600 km covering South Asia, Iran and Turkey.
According to the project incharge of the railways, the whole project has been divided into three rail corridors — South Rail, Central Rail and North Rail. However, the proposed international route passing through Bihar is to originate from Myanmar and will pass through Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and West Bengal, he said, adding the route in Bihar will run through Guwahati, Siliguri, Kishanganj, Katihar, Barauni, Patna and Mughalsarai.
The greatest advantage of the project is that it will connect transport services, particularly to every important industrial centre, port and container terminal. It is bound to give a fillip to container traffic between South Asia and European countries. Since the Indian Railways have the most developed network, international trade would get a boost. This project is being taken up by the railways in pursuance of the government’s `Look East’ policy, a board official said.
By Kumod Verma
Source: Times Of India
Tags: china, economic services, feasibility study, governmental agreement, india, indian railway, indian railways, rail corridors, railway lines, railway network, railways, sri lanka, traffic, transport service, transport services, unescap
