Haryana announces rail corridor along KMP

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Wednesday announced that a new rail corridor is being planned between Palwal and Sonipat, parallel to the KMP (Kundli-Manesar-Palwal) Expressway, to ease traffic between Haryana and Delhi. The "Haryana Orbital Rail Corridor Project" will be connecting all major industrial cities of the state and is likely to cost about Rs 4,100 crore. Its detailed report is being prepared by the Haryana Rail Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd (HRIDC), Khattar said.

The chief minister was addressing an outreach event organised by the HRIDC for the stakeholders in Gurugram on Wednesday. Confident of getting another term after the BJP's victory in the recent Jind bye-election, Khattar added that the project would be completed in three years "before we complete our next term".

The proposed rail line would be 130 kms long and will enable direct rail connectivity between Palwal and Sonipat bypassing Delhi and linking Asaoti (on the Delhi-Mathura route), Patli (on the Delhi-Rewari route), Asaudha (on the Delhi-Rohtak route), and Harsana Kalan (on the Delhi-Ambala route) through a new broad gauge rail line. The corridor is going to be double line electrified with 25 tonne axle load capacity.

Khattar said the project is being developed as a joint venture model and therefore all its stakeholders -- Indian Railways, Haryana government, HRIDC, CONCOR, Dedicated Freight Corridor, HSIIDC, Maruti Suzuki, Model Economic Township Limited (formerly Reliance Haryana SEZ Ltd), Allcargo and others -- will have to bear its cost.