Even though railway minister Mamata Banerjee has tried to please the common man happy by not increasing fare and freight, she has given no
special cheer for people in Vidarbha. Thanks to the apathetic politicians of the region who never pursued any of the problems with railway ministry, the region has virtually drawn a blank.
Barring a few announcements like plan for a medical college along with railway hospital at Nagpur, conversion of Nagpur-Nagbhid narrow-gauge line to broad-gauge and making 2111/2112 Amravati-Mumbai tri-weekly Express daily, there is not much for Vidarbha. The city once again ended up losing as the weekly 2143-2144 Nagpur-Gaya Deekshabhoomi Express has been hijacked to Kolhapur. The frequency of weekly Nagpur-Ahmedabad Prerna Express has also not been increased.
All the demands for trains to cities like Hyderabad, Patna, Lucknow, Delhi and Bangalore have been ignored. The vital Nagpur-Wardha third line proposal also does not find place in the budget. Of the dozen non-stop trains only one— Chennai-Delhi— will pass through the city but will be of no use to local passengers. Nagpur is not on the list of 50 stations getting multi-functional complexes (MFCs) having shopping facility, food stalls and restaurants. Interestingly, smaller cities like Durg, Nanded, and Jabalpur have been included.
special cheer for people in Vidarbha. Thanks to the apathetic politicians of the region who never pursued any of the problems with railway ministry, the region has virtually drawn a blank.
Barring a few announcements like plan for a medical college along with railway hospital at Nagpur, conversion of Nagpur-Nagbhid narrow-gauge line to broad-gauge and making 2111/2112 Amravati-Mumbai tri-weekly Express daily, there is not much for Vidarbha. The city once again ended up losing as the weekly 2143-2144 Nagpur-Gaya Deekshabhoomi Express has been hijacked to Kolhapur. The frequency of weekly Nagpur-Ahmedabad Prerna Express has also not been increased.
All the demands for trains to cities like Hyderabad, Patna, Lucknow, Delhi and Bangalore have been ignored. The vital Nagpur-Wardha third line proposal also does not find place in the budget. Of the dozen non-stop trains only one— Chennai-Delhi— will pass through the city but will be of no use to local passengers. Nagpur is not on the list of 50 stations getting multi-functional complexes (MFCs) having shopping facility, food stalls and restaurants. Interestingly, smaller cities like Durg, Nanded, and Jabalpur have been included.