The Ministry of Railways has sanctioned 300 railway infrastructure projects since FY 2022-23 under the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan, covering a total network length of 13,808 km, the Parliament was told today, 27 March.
These projects include 51 new line projects, 17 gauge conversion works and 232 doubling projects, reflecting a strong push towards expanding capacity and improving connectivity across the national rail network.
“During last three years i.e. FY 2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25 and the current FY 2025-26, 300 projects (51 New Line, 17 Gauge Conversion and 232 Doubling) of total length 13,808 km have been sanctioned across Indian Railways under PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan,” Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha.
The PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan (NMP) was launched in October 2021 to bring a transformative change in the approach towards planning and execution of infrastructural projects pertaining to the transportation sector.
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The NMP, spanning across the entire country has brought in synergy between the infrastructural sectors such as railways, shipping, roadways, telecommunications, pipelines, etc. through collaboration amongst concerned Ministries/State Governments/Departments, speeding up the clearances needed for the project completion as well as planning at a faster pace.
The ministry said that Indian Railways has immediately imbibed the principles of Gati Shakti in its project planning process, expediting appraisal, sanction and execution of projects.
On ground survey, route alignment, deciding alternative route to avoid passing through forest and wildlife areas, connectivity to ports, mines, collieries is done through PM Gati Shakti Institutional mechanism developed by BISAG-N, the minister said.
“This has led to enhancement in the quality of preparation of Detailed Project Report and reduction in project cost,” he added.
“Now survey of all New Line, Gauge Conversion and Doubling projects are taken up under PM Gati Shakti Institutional mechanism developed by BISAG-N for the development of multimodal connectivity infrastructure to various Economic Zones with an objective to have integrated planning, enhanced logistics efficiency, first and last mile connectivity, throughput enhancement and remove gaps for seamless movement of people, goods/ commodities i.e. agricultural products, fertilizers, coal, iron ore, steel, cement, limestone etc.,” the minister added.
