Jamshedpur, Dec. 24: The railways has finally acted on its plan to shift the headquarters of the Chakradharpur division to Adityapur in neighbouring Seraikela-Kharswan district.

While the formal proposal — being thought of and discussed for long — was sent to the headquarters of the South Eastern Railways at Garden Reach last week, the timing is significant as the move has come at a time of heightened Naxal violence in and around the state.

Chakradharpur is in the naxal belt. In fact, pointing to the surrounding forests of the Chakradharpur headquarters, the intelligence wing of South Eastern Railways had also cited a threat perception to the present location.

Superintendent of the Railway Police Force Mritunjay Kumar agreed. He said the Chakradharpur headquarters was under constant threat of naxal attacks. “The division is vulnerable… About 90 per cent of the division is considered to be rebel prone area. I have also been highlighting this point at various forums and had requested for additional forces at regular intervals,” said the man whose jurisdiction includes Chakradharpur, Adra, Ranchi and parts of Kharagpur division.

Space constraints led to Tatanagar not figuring in the list of probables, said Chakradharpur division officials. Hence, Adityapur, which is not only close to Tatanagar station but also fulfils the other requirements, was chosen.

“The railways was toying with the idea of shifting the headquarters from Chakradharpur. Adityapur was finalised after a recent feasibility study carried out by railway officials,” said Rajendra Prasad, a senior railway official at Tatanagar.

Officials at Garden Reach said the railways would spend close to Rs 400 crore to set up the new headquarters. “Adityapur is ideal as the operations can be monitored efficiently. It has a locational advantage as most railway customers — industry houses like Tata Steel and Lafarge and several sponge iron plants —were located close by,” said a senior official at Garden Reach.

While the Railway Board would be approached for funds soon, the process of shifting the headquarters will begin next year, he added. From the revenue point of view, Adityapur is emerging as an important railway station in the division. With almost all major mail and express trains under the division passing through, Adityapur will soon have a new goods yard.

The development of the rail network that forms the Chakradharpur division dates back to the days of the Bengal-Nagpur Railway. The first rail line in the Chakradharpur division was opened on January 22, 1890 and 72.25 miles of tracks were laid along Purulia-Chakradharpur. Presently, it extends over 741.705 km.

With 86 stations, the Chakradharpur division has two major electric loco sheds. They also serve other divisions of S.E. Railways.