New Delhi: The Cabinet on Tuesday approved three multi-track railway projects, Ahmedabad metro expansion project and Srinagar new integrated airport terminal project with a total investment of Rs 11,806 crore. The cabinet also approved increase in MSP for raw jute.Announcing the decisions, I&B Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the railway projects – doubling the Gondia-Jabalpur track and laying of third and fourth lines on the Punarakh-Kiul and Gamharia-Chandil corridors – will add about 307 km to the Indian Railways network and enable the national transporter to induct 38 more express and passenger trains.The projects span eight districts of Maharashtra, MP, Bihar and Jharkhand with a total investment of approximately Rs 9,072 crore and will be completed by 2030-31.Vaishnaw also announced the development of a civil enclave at Srinagar Airport at an estimated cost of Rs 1,677 crore. “People want to visit the valley and there is a high demand for air transport,” he said.The cabinet approved the expansion of Ahmedabad Metro at a cost of approximately Rs 1,067 crore, the government said in an official release. It will be completed within four years. The extended corridor is expected to benefit approximately 23,700 passengers in 2029.
Government approves power grid increase equity investment
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on Tuesday approved a proposal to increase the equity investment threshold for each subsidiary of public sector undertaking Powergrid to Rs 7,500 crore from Rs 5,000 crore to enable it to bid for capital-intensive power transmission projects. It will enable Powergrid to expand investment in its core business and support the divestment of renewable energy capacity, helping to achieve the 2030 target of 500 GW from non-fossil fuel sources.
