Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah, today inaugurated, laid the foundation stone, and launched a series of major railway development projects worth over 1,500 crore rupees in Sabarmati.
The minister along with Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel also flagged off the country’s first LNG-powered train from Sabarmati station.
Addressing a massive public gathering on this occasion, the Home Minister highlighted the remarkable transformation of Indian Railways over the last 12 years under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Mr Shah noted that annual diesel consumption in railways has drastically reduced from 293 crore liters to 108 crore liters, with ongoing efforts aimed at eliminating it entirely. He further emphasised that railway electrification has surged from a modest 75 kilometers per year in 2010-11 to around 7,188 kilometers per year, achieving 99.6 percent electrification across the national network.
Byte: Amit Shah
The Minister stressed on India’s rapid strides in modern rail infrastructure ranging from high-power WAG-12 electric locomotives and dedicated freight corridors to advanced indigenous safety systems like ‘Kavach.
The program witnessed the inauguration of the WAG-12 Locomotive Maintenance Shed, automatic signaling systems, and the foundation laying for the indigenous ‘Kavach’ safety system on various routes.
