At least 15 major new line projects having an aggregate length of 1,395 km at a cost of Rs 55,206 crore have been taken up in the Northeastern region, The Assam Tribune reported. An expenditure of Rs 18,477 crore has been incurred on these projects up to March.
In a Rajya Sabha reply, Minister of State for Railways Rajen Gohain said that an outlay of Rs 4,430 crore has been provided for 2018-19 for these projects and residual liabilities of some completed projects.
Completion of projects depends on many factors like availability of funds, land acquisition, forestry and wildlife clearances, shifting of services, working season, geographical conditions, law-and-order situation, among others. Therefore, it is not feasible to fix timelines for all the projects, Gohain said.