(a) whether there is no scope of introducing new rail services from Delhi to eastern parts of the country as the major routes remain busy and over utilized;
(b) if so, the facts thereof and reaction of the Government thereto; and
(c) the remedial steps taken by the Government in this regard and the outcome thereof?
MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, COAL, FINANCE AND CORPORATE AFFAIRS
(SHRI PIYUSH GOYAL)
(a) to (c): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.
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STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (c) OF STARRED QUESTION NO. 58 BY SHRIMATI RAMA DEVI AND SHRI RAM TAHAL CHOUDHARY TO BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 06.02.2019 REGARDING RAIL SERVICES TO EASTERN PARTS
(a) & (b) Introduction of new train services is an ongoing process on Indian Railway depending on the demand and operational feasibility. Despite operational constraints, Indian Railways, during 2014-15 to 2018-2019 (till 31st January, 2019), have introduced 24 pairs of regular services bound for various destinations located in the eastern part of the country from Delhi area. In addition special trains have also been operated to clear the rush of east bound passengers during festive seasons/holidays/vacation etc. Furthermore, it has been decided to introduce the new technology “Train Set” type Vande Bharat Express between New Delhi and Varanasi and a weekly Humsafar Express between Anand Vihar (T) and Madhupur.
(c) There has been historical neglect in investment in infrastructure which has led to capacity constraints on Indian Railways including in the Eastern parts of India. To address this, a number of infrastructure and traffic facility works including terminal capacity works and doubling projects are being undertaken. Currently on Indian Railways, a total of 263 doubling projects including on the eastern sector are under various stages of implementation to increase line capacity. A masterplan for the whole network is also under consideration. Lastly, advanced signalling is also being considered for Indian Railways.
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