CHENNAI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi should intervene to ensure the immediate and full release of funds for railway projects in Tamil Nadu, revival of projects kept in abeyance, and sanction of additional new projects in line with the State's economic stature, Chief Minister MK Stalin urged on Sunday.
Tamil Nadu had accorded administrative sanction for acquiring 2,500.61 hectares of land for various Union government railway projects, but funds had not been sanctioned by the Railways for 931.52 hectares, Stalin said in his letter to the PM, adding that the Railway Ministry delaying the release of funds, particularly for land acquisition, were hampering project execution.
"Out of land acquisition required for 19 major ongoing railway projects, 94 per cent has already been completed and handed over to the Railways.
However, progress is being affected due to delays and piecemeal release of funds," the Chief Minister wrote, adding that timely payment of compensation was crucial to avoid disruptions.
Citing the doubling of the broad-gauge line between Thiruvananthapuram and Kanniyakumari as a key example, Stalin said compensation funds amounting to Rs 289.78 crore were yet to be allocated for the acquisition of 16.86 hectares, even though the project was being monitored through the Union government's Project Monitoring Group portal.
The State government had given the highest priority to railway projects and put in place a robust monitoring mechanism, with the Chief Secretary and Transport Secretary holding monthly coordination meetings with railway officials to resolve bottlenecks, he said.
Despite being India's second-largest economy and a major manufacturing hub, and making significant contributions to national GDP and exports, the allocation of new railway projects to Tamil Nadu has been relatively limited in recent years, he said.
He urged the Prime Minister to direct the ministry to restart stalled projects such as the Thoothukudi–Madurai (via Aruppukkottai) and Tindivanam–Tiruvannamalai lines, and consider sanctioning additional projects.
He expressed confidence that the Prime Minister's intervention would strengthen cooperative federalism and lead to early resolution of the issues.