Patliputra Junction is once again set to miss its inauguration date.
East Central Railway (ECR) general manager Madhuresh Kumar had announced while releasing the new train timetable on August 31, 2014, that all necessary work was done and Pataliputra Junction would become functional before Durga Puja.
But railway sources now say some formalities remain. As Durga Puja starts from September 25, the junction would miss its deadline a fifth time. Built at around Rs 1.5 crore, the terminal, 12km northwest of Patna Junction, can reduce the load on Patna Junction and Rajendra Nagar Terminus — through which around 350 trains pass daily. It would also prove to be a boon for people bound for Pune, Bangalore, Mumbai and Hyderabad.
The junction was first scheduled to open in April last year, then on August 15, 2013, then on September 6, 2013, and lastly on October 31, 2013. The last inauguration date was cancelled at the eleventh hour as then Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, former railway minister Mallikarjun Kharge and former chief minister Nitish Kumar did not to turn up to flag off Patliputra-Yeshwantpur Express and Patliputra-Chandigarh Express. Residents from nearby Rupaspur and Jalalpur villages were sitting on the tracks to demand roads and a foot over bridge in their area. The trains had to be flagged off from Danapur railway station. Till date these trains depart from Danapur.
“Every time we hear the junction is about to function. Will it ever happen,” asked Asiana resident Ritesh Kumar.
Asked why it missed another deadline, ECR chief public relation officer Arvind Kumar Rajak said: “We are in the process of completing the final work. Pataliputra junction would become operational by Diwali. We don’t miss deadlines intentionally.”
Earlier, ECR general manager Madhuresh had told The Telegraph that the issue with the villagers had been resolved. Top railway sources said there would be no formal inauguration. “This time no special guest or chief guest would be called. We will just start the train from the junction,” a senior railway official said.
