Trains stopped, stock at Rajpura Thermal Power Plant affected

Chandigarh, April 4

Just ahead of the crucial paddy sowing season, the inability of Indian Railways to change the coal linkage to the Rajpura Thermal Power Plant has adversely impacted the coal stocks at the Rajpura Thermal Power plant.

The Indian Railways was to change the coal linkage to the Rajpura Thermal Power Plant from the Indian Railway Network to the newly laid dedicated freight corridor (DFC) network. The Indian Railways asked the authorities concerned to stop all train movement on the track serving Nabha Power for at least five days. Joint permissions from all concerned departments were secured for this change of interlocking of the railway tracks at Sarai Banjara railway station, on the Ambala-Attari line.

Subsequently, coal loading for the thermal power plant from the pitheads was suspended for five days. However, a day ahead of the scheduled change of rail linkage, Indian Railways put the project on hold. This led to a shortfall in the arrival of more than 1 lakh tonnes of coal in Punjab over a period of 5 days.