Synopsis
Former union minister Srikant Jena has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi opposing the merger of Waltair division with South Coast Railway zone. Jena urged the government to strengthen the East Coast Railway instead. The BJP claimed Odisha would retain three divisions, while BJD MLAs opposed the move, alleging injustice to the state.
Former union minister and Congress leader in Odisha Srikant Jena on Sunday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, opposing the central government’s move to merge the Waltair division of ECoR with the new South Coast Railway (SCoR) zone. He also urged the PM to take steps to fortify the East Coast Railway (ECoR), instead of dismantling its structure.
The BJD also opposed the Centre’s move to delink the Waltair division of ECoR and merge it with the new railway zone, while the ruling BJP in Odisha claimed that the state would continue to have three divisions as earlier.
“I earnestly request your (PM) intervention to reconsider this decision and take steps to fortify ECoR rather than dismantle its core structure. I also appeal to you to ensure equitable treatment for Odisha by granting a more comprehensive railway zone in line with the demand of the people of Odisha,” Jena wrote to the prime Minister.
Expressing deep concern over the plan to delink the Waltair division, Jena said this move has serious “implications on the operational and financial viability of ECoR”.
The East Coast Railway has three divisions – Khurda Road, Sambalpur and Waltair. However, the authorities have planned to merge the Waltair division with the South Coast Railway (SCoR).
The Congress leader said since its establishment in 1996, the ECoR has consistently ranked among the highest revenue contributors to Indian Railways.
The removal of the Waltair division will significantly “weaken ECoR, potentially jeopardising its operations and its critical role in Odisha’s development”, he alleged.
Jena also advocated merger of Sundargarh, Balasore, and Mayurbhanj districts into the East Coast Railway (ECoR) by establishing a new railway division in northern Odisha.
“It is disappointing that the current Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, a Rajya Sabha MP from Odisha, has taken such steps, which are totally against Odisha’s interests and question his commitment to the state he represents,” the Congress leader said.
However, the BJP rejected the apprehensions expressed by Jena.
“Srikanta Jena is doing petty politics. He is trying to draw attention so that he may be appointed as PCC (Pradesh Congress Committee) president of Odisha,” BJP spokesperson here Anil Biswal said in a statement.
Stating that “not a single inch of railway tracks from Odisha is going to other states”, the BJP leader said that the proposed Rayagada division has already been sanctioned and tender has been floated for its establishment.
“Therefore, the East Coast Railway will continue to have three divisions -Rayagada, Sambalpur and Khurda Road,” Biswal said.
The BJP leader also said that the highest revenue-generating railway line KK (Kothavalasa-Kirandul) line of the ECoR will be shifted to the Rayagada division.
“So, there is no loss of revenue for the East Coast zone,” Biswal said.
The BJP alleged that neither the BJD nor the Congress had opposed the formation of the South Coast Railway zone when the Andhra Reorganisation Bill was passed by the UPA government.
Meanwhile, BJD MLAs Goutam Buddha Das and Sarada Jena have raised the issue in the Odisha Assembly and alleged that the ‘double engine” government has been meting out “injustice to Odisha” by delinking the Waltair division from the East Coast Railway.
The term “double engine” is used by BJP leaders to refer to the party being in power at the Centre as well as in a state.
“We are surprised that 20 BJP MPs from Odisha in the Lok Sabha remained silent even as the Centre moves with its plan to delink the Waltair division from the ECoR zone,” Das said.
( Originally published on Dec 01, 2024 )
