Ludhiana: Decades of commuter frustration are set to end following the central government’s approval of two major railway overbridge (ROB) projects in Doraha and Dhuri, worth a combined Rs 124 crore.Union minister of state for railways, Ravneet Singh Bittu, confirmed on Wednesday that work had already commenced at the Doraha site, located on the critical Delhi-Amritsar main line.Doraha ROB: A Rs 70 Cr SolutionThe Doraha crossing has long been a bottleneck for travellers heading toward Chandigarh, Ropar, and Anandpur Sahib. With 190-odd trains and more than 3,000 vehicles passing through daily, the crossing paralysed local traffic frequently. “The contractor has already moved machinery to the site,” minister Bittu said. “This project worth Rs 70 crore will provide Malwa region’s people with immense relief and accelerate Punjab’s economic progress significantly.“Political Friction Over ApprovalsThe project’s approval follows a period of public sparring between minister Bittu and Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann. Bittu alleged previously that the state’s public works department (PWD) was withholding the necessary no-objection certificate (NOC), despite the railway department’s offering to bear the full cost. At one point, the Union minister of state threatened to stage a protest against the CM to force the project forward, citing “cheap politics” as the primary reason for the delay.Dhuri Project and the Hunger StrikeIn Dhuri, the general arrangement drawing (GAD) for a Rs-54-crore overbridge has officially been approved. The announcement comes as a victory for local resident Jaswinder Singh, who had been on a hunger strike for four days to demand the bridge’s construction. Minister Bittu praised Jaswinder Singh’s persistence and directed the local BJP unit to visit the protest site to end the hunger strike. “Sometimes problems are resolved in time, and that time has finally come,” Bittu said in a video message, thanking local organisations for their coordination. MSID:: 127699665 413 |
