Muzaffarpur: Amid the years-long delay in the construction of the new Muzaffarpur-Chhapra railway section of Bihar, the Railways has now decided to conduct a fresh land survey to take the project forward. In this regard, the Administrative Officer of the Railway Construction Department has written a letter to East Central Railway (PUMRE) requesting to start the process of conducting the final land survey.
According to the information, land acquisition work is stuck in many blocks of Saraiya and Saran districts of Muzaffarpur. Due to non-availability of land, construction work has not started yet. At the initial level, Poomre had conducted topographical survey using drones. On the basis of that survey, Railways had also completed the study of traffic and land acquisition. Now, after the final land survey is conducted afresh, the DPR will be sent to the Railway Board, on the basis of which the further construction process will be decided.
This project was first approved by the Central Government in the year 2008. At that time its estimated cost was Rs 400 crore, but now this project has exceeded Rs 2600 crore. The new railway line is proposed to be approximately 84.65 kilometers long. This will provide an alternative of about 28 kilometers less distance than the current Muzaffarpur-Hajipur-Sonpur-Chhapra route, which is likely to reduce the travel time.
In this ambitious railway project, land in many blocks of Muzaffarpur and Chhapra is to be acquired. But the acquisition work is being hampered due to complicated procedures, compensation disputes and administrative laxity.
On the other hand, another important aspect related to the project has increased the difficulty. The contractors who are responsible for construction works, especially bridges and culverts, have given up. In the report sent to the Construction Department, it has been said that the contractor is unable to do the work due to the plan being quite old and the necessary documents not being available. It has also applied to East Central Railway to cancel its tender.
It is being told that DPR, land acquisition status and other necessary documents have not been provided to the company yet. In such a situation, the contractor is expressing his inability to start the work, while the Railway Administration has not yet taken any formal cognizance of his application.
Given the years of stalled progress in the project, it is now expected that the project will pick up pace again after the completion of the new land survey. After which the dream of Muzaffarpur-Chhapra railway section can be taken forward.
