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Cabinet Approves Rs 10,783 Crore Railway Projects to Boost Freight

Three New Rail Lines Add 656 KM and 27 MTPA of Freight Capacity

Railway freight capacity

News: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved ₹10,783 crore railway multitracking projects across West Bengal, Jharkhand, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

The three projects will add around 656 km to the Indian Railways network and are expected to create an additional 27 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of railway freight capacity. 

The projects include the Kharagpur–Jharsuguda fourth line, Katni–Pendra Road fourth line and Bilaspur–Pendra Road third line. The railway infrastructure expansion is aimed at easing congestion and improving freight rail logistics on important routes used to transport coal, cement, iron and steel. Planned under the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan, the projects are expected to improve operational efficiency, reduce logistics costs and strengthen multimodal connectivity. The government estimates the additional capacity will support more freight movement while improving reliability across key industrial corridors.