Indian Railways to introduce 200 new lines across country

New Delhi: The Minister of State of Railways, Rajen Gohain, said that the Indian Railways will introduce 200 new lines across the country for smooth commuting of passengers.

Works on several lines are on verge of completion and it will be executed very soon, said the minister.

The decision for taking new lines is made in Railway Budget only which is a yearly exercise.

The new lines that are soon to be operative are as under:

Assam & North Eastern Region: 15

Andhra Pradesh: 18

Bihar: 34

Chhattisgarh: 8

Delhi: 1

Gujarat: 4

Haryana: 7

Himachal Pradesh: 4

Jammu & Kashmir: 1

Jharkhand: 14

Karnataka: 16

Kerala: 2

Madhya Pradesh: 8

Maharashtra: 12

Odisha: 10

Punjab: 6

Rajasthan: 10

Telangana: 9

Tamil Nadu: 8

Uttar Pradesh: 15

Uttarakhand: 3

West Bengal: 18

On Wednesday, the government said 21 green corridors were created in 2017-18 by the Indian Railways under the Swachh Bharat Mission.

Minister of State for Railways Rajen Gohain in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha said as a part of Swachh Bharat Mission, Indian Railways is proliferating bio-toilets on its coaching stock so that no human waste is discharged from coaches on to the track.

In order to demonstrate the advantage of fitment of bio-toilets, six green corridors were made functional in 2016-17 and 21 in 2017-2018, Gohain said.

The Minister said that on green corridors, the introduction of bio-toilets in coaches has been done to avoid direct discharge of human excreta on railway tracks or station premises.

This benefits the common man as foul smell, unhygienic surrounding as well as shabby look are avoided, he said.

In the bio-toilets, the human excreta is collected in an eco-friendly bio-tank fitted under each toilet. The bio-tank decomposes the fecal matter and converts it into water and gases.