Bhubaneswar: Chairman of the Railway Board and Director General of the Ministry of Railways Shri Suneet Sharma during his one-day visit to Bhubaneswar inspected Bhubaneswar station and reviewed the ongoing projects in this region with the general manager, the directors of the divisional railways and the senior heads of the departments of the East Coast Railroad.

During the inspection of Bhubaneswar station, Shri Sharma stressed the necessity and importance of the facilities provided to esteemed passengers. In an interaction with the media, Shri Sharma said that a number of facilities have been developed and are under development. The main emphasis is on the development of circulation areas, hall, platform lighting, waiting rooms, toilets, recently added elevators which are essential for passenger comfort. Shri Sharma also interacted with some of the passengers who were waiting for their trains in the waiting room.

Speaking to the media, Shri Sharma informed that Bhubaneswar station will become a world class station. The redevelopment plan for Bhubaneswar station has already been drawn up. The railway is coordinating with BDA and a joint plan is being developed. He also informed that the Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA) will work out the railway part of the development work and the rest of the work will be done by BDA. Steps are being taken to complete this work as soon as possible. A platform and two additional lines will be added in this project.

In addition to the development of Bhubaneswar station, the new Bhubaneswar station is being developed as a satellite terminal station of Bhubaneswar main station.

All of Odisha’s ongoing railway projects are of national significance. The railways have made their contribution to the projects. The railway receives support from the state government for the acquisition of land for projects.

Later, Shri Sharma reviewed the ongoing railway projects of the East Coast Railway with General Manager Shri Vidya Bhushan, all major department heads, senior officials and division directors of the Railways of Rail Sadan.

Shri Sharma praised East Coast Railway for its consistency in loading and maintaining the top position among all Indian Railways loading areas. Safety is paramount in the railways. Special attention is paid to safety in train operation as it is our priority, added Shri Sharma.

To improve the quality of service both in the cargo and in the passenger segment, Shri Sharma said special attention should be paid to the supervision and advice of the crew, focusing on safety, by reducing detention at the terminal, increasing line capacity by means of intermediate block signaling and Automatic blocking signaling system.

During the review meeting, Shri Sharma commended ECoR for improving the project monitoring system. He said that as railroaders we should be proud of our attitude and integrity towards our work. He encouraged everyone to take care of their staff and emphasized human productivity.

Shri Vidya Bhushan, General Manager, East Coast Railway, Shri Rinkesh Roy, Divisional Director of Railways, Khurda Road Division, as well as all key department heads of ECoR attended the review meeting. The Division Manager of Waltair and Sambalpur Railways participated by video conference in the meeting.