Title - In absence of rail link, Mewat residents feel cut off

Gurgaon:Eleven-year-old Imaan, a student, is excited as he will be sitting in a train for the first time on Saturday as his school plans to take them for a ride on a local train from Manesar’s Patli station.He is among the thousands of such children in the district which has been devoid of rail connectivity.While the entire state is busy celebrating getting a new Rewari-Jhajjar-Rohtak train, after 34 years, over 10 lakh residents of Mewat are feeing left out again.The 20th district was carved from Gurgoan and Hathin subdivision of Faridabad in April 2005.The district comprising 431 villages and 297 panchayats has waited for long to get a rail link, but despite repeated promises by state and local leaders, nothing concrete has been achieved so far.Despite repeatedly proposing an Alwar-Palwal railway line through Hathin, Pinangwan and and Ferozepur Jhirka and a Gurgaon-Nuh-Alwar railway line, nothing much has been done, much to dismay of the local residents.“Leaders have forgotten that Haryana exists beyond Rohtak also. Every leader who comes here promises a railway line but nothing happens. Is it because we as a district have no political mileage or industry? The nearest railway station is around 30 km away. They call us backwater but who has cut us off from entire state? Our children wish to go out to study and work, but with no rail link it's difficult. We plan to have a mahapanchayat in this regard in next week,” said a panchayat member from Nuh.

"We have been taking up this issue for 20 years and have submitted hundreds of memorandums and done agitations, but to no avail," said Nooruddin Noor, vice-president of the Mewat zila parishad.

The Nearest railway station to Mewat is Patli railway station, Manesar, Gurgaon. Itis located 27.5 km from Mewat.