HimVani
Shimla: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal has let the Himachal Vidhan Sabha know that the issue of funding the multi crore Bhanupali-Bilaspur-Beri railway line has remained unresolved.
Responding to a query by Rajesh Dharmani (Cong-Ghumarwin), Chief Minister said that earlier the central government had agreed to fund the project on a ration of 75 to 25 basis between ministry of railways and the state government. The cost of land was to be included in the state share and any other cost overruns to be borne by the railway ministry. However, the ministry has turned around to propose that 25 percent of the completion cost needs to be footed by the state.
He said that state government has asked the central government to review the decision. Railway ministry has informed that they had completed the final location survey of the railway line and had sanctioned part detailed estimate for Bhanupali-Dharot stretch (20 Kms) amounting to Rs 350 Cr. Contract for earthwork and minor bridges for first 3 Kms had been awarded and a memorandum of understanding had been signed between Railways and Geological Survey of India for geological investigation, he added.
