Three Amrit Bharat Expresses, 4 passenger trains flagged off in Bihar

Patna, Sep 29 (PTI) Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, along with Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, on Monday flagged off seven trains - three Amrit Bharat Expresses and four passenger trains - in Bihar.

While Vaishnaw attended the function through video conference, Choudhary turned up at Patna Junction station.

The addition of the three Amrit Bharat trains — Muzaffarpur-Charlapalli, Chhapra-Anand Vihar and Darbhanga-Ajmer — has taken the total number of such trains to 30 across the country, 26 of which originate from Bihar.

This, the government said, is an important step towards realising the vision of “Viksit Bihar Se Viksit Bharat” (developed India through a developed Bihar).

The other four new trains are Patna-Buxar Passenger, Jhajha-Danapur Passenger, Nawada-Patna Passenger, and Patna-Islampur Passenger.

Assembly elections are likely to be announced soon in the state.

Speaking via video conference, Vaishnaw said that the new trains will provide a new level of connectivity in Bihar.

“Since Prime Minister Narendra Modi assumed office in 2014, he has prioritised the railways, with a special focus on the state.... Before 2014, the annual railway budget for Bihar was only around Rs 1,000 crore, whereas today it stands at about Rs 10,000 crore,” he said.

Vaishnaw said that Bihar’s railway network has been fully electrified, and 1,899 km of new track has been laid.

Additionally, the 28-km Patna rail-cum-road bridge, 15-km Munger rail-cum-road bridge, and the long-awaited Kosi bridge have all been completed, the minister said, adding that the Araria–Galgalhia new line has also been completed and will be inaugurated soon.

The deputy CM said, “Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the railways sector has found a new direction in Bihar. The allocation of Rs 10,066 crore rail budget for Bihar, which is nine times the allocation made by previous governments, has increased the speed of construction of new lines, doubling of existing ones, electrification, and station development.” Vaishnaw also pointed out that projects worth around Rs 1 lakh crore are underway. PTI SUK NN