Prabhu assures more investment for Odisha’s rail infra

Bhubaneswar: Railway minister Suresh Prabhu on Saturday said the Centre is ready to invest more in Odisha to see it as a developed State in the coming days.

“This is the first time that such a huge amount of investment has been proposed for Odisha in this year’s Railway budget I hope the State will figure as one of the most developed cities in the country in next 3-4 years and railway will contribute a lot towards this,” Prabhu told media persons after arriving at the city airport here.

“For this we are going to set up a new company in association with the State government, in which more investment options will be available for the State,” added the minister who will attend multiple event, including a programme on Railway Week, during his two-day Odisha tour.

Stating that railway infrastructure is needed for the development of a State, he said, “Steps have been taken to connect more areas of the State with the country’s rail network. I have been informed that several major projects are going on in the State and will meet the deadline.”

Against Odisha’s Rs 5,000 crore demand, the Centre has allocated Rs 4682 crore for the State for the year 2016-17 and accepted some of its major demands by sanctioning Jeypore-Malkangiri and Jeypore-Nabarangpur railway line projects.

The allocation is 30 percent more than the Rs 3,712 crore allotted for the State in 2015-16.