11 new engines on Kangra rail line to improve service

Our Correspondent

Palampur, December 29

The Indian Railways will introduce 11 latest engines to improve its services on the 120-km narrow gauge Kangra valley rail line, said Ashutosh Aggarwal, General Manager, Indian Railways, here. He added that soon train services would be resumed on this section which were suspended because of the Covid-19 crisis.

Aggarwal reached Palampur on a special train to inspect the Kangra valley rail line and various ongoing civil works on this route. He said that four most modern engines had already reached Pathankot while seven others would come later. The train services in the valley would improve drastically once these engines were introduced, he added.

He said that most of the railway engines running on this line were obsolete and needed to be replaced. Therefore, the Railways was introducing new engines. “There is a big scope for creating a religious tourism circuit through the Kangra valley rail, as it is connected with various shrines such as Jwalamukhi, Kangra, Chamunda, Chintpurni and the ancient Shiva temple at Baijnath. The state Tourism Department should work on this aspect and the Railways will extend its full support. The Kangra valley rail line will complete 100 years soon. Though there is a plan to declare this route as a heritage line, the Railways is yet to get the final nod from Unesco,” he added.

He said that on the directions Union Railways Minister Piyush Goel, the department had taken up a project for the face-lift and overhauling of the Kangra valley rail line and also planned to provide the best possible facilities to travellers to attract more and more tourists.

He said that there was a proposal to renovate all seven trains running between Pathankot and Jogindernagar, covering 120 km in nine hours. He added that the Railways would also improve the condition of the track, which needed major repairs at many points if fast trains were to be introduced.