Bhubaneswar, June 19: Nayagarh's long wait for rail connectivity finally ended today with the first passenger train rolling on the stretch between Bolagarh and Nayagarh.
Union railways minister Suresh Prabhu dedicated the new 12km stretch of the Khurda Road-Balangir project through video conference from New Delhi.
Railway officials said a special train was run from Nayagarh to Khurda Road and regular train service on the route will begin from tomorrow. Prabhu also inaugurated the Nayagarh Town Station Building and Bolagarh Road Passenger Halt and flagged off the extension of Khurda Road-Bolagarh Road-Khurda Road passenger trains up to Nayagarh.
Officials in the East Coast Railway said the Nayagarh-Khurda Road Passenger (58430) would leave Nayagarh at 5am and reach Khurda Road at 7am. The Khurda Road-Nayagarh Passenger (58429) will leave for its destination at 7.35pm and arrive at Nayagarh at 9.30pm.
Another train, the Khurda Road-Nayagarh Passenger (58431) will leave the terminal station at 7.45am and reach Nayagarh at 9.30am. The return train (58432) will leave Nayagarh at 10am and reach Khurda Road at 11.30am.
Hundreds of local residents, who have been eagerly waiting for rail connectivity to Nayagarh, boarded the inaugural special train. "It took more than two decades for rail connectivity to reach Nayagarh and it felt like a dream was coming true for us. We have staged several demonstrations during the two decades demanding rail connectivity and all that have finally come to fruition," said Amarendra Jena, a passenger on the special train.
"Both the trains will have 10 second class compartments and two guard-cum-luggage vans and halt at Khurda Town, Begunia, Rajsunakhala, Bolagarh Town passenger halt and Bolagarh Road stations between Khurda Road and Nayagarh from both directions," said a railway official.
The Khurda Road and Balangir railway line has been a much-awaited project. The 289km project was sanctioned in 1994-95, but it took almost 20 years for the first train to roll on the lines. Train on the section between Khurda Road and Begunia began in July 2015. "Our next target is to complete the line between Balangir and Bhainsipalli from Balangir by next March. The entire project is targeted to be completed by June 2021," said a railway official.
