Title - Ranchi MP word on train to south

A slighted Jharkhand may soon get a new train balm for its Railway Budget wounds.Former Union minister Subodh Kant Sahay on Wednesday claimed that he had taken up the grudge of the people of the state with railway minister Pawan Kumar Bansal who in turn had agreed to introduce a new train that will connect Ranchi to Bangalore via Hyderabad. The minister, Sahay claimed, had also apparently agreed to create a halt for the Bhubaneswar-New Delhi Rajdhani Express at Muri Junction.Bansal in his February 26 budget had only proposed the laying of tracks on the Barwadih-Chirimiri route and increased the frequency of the Ranchi-Delhi Garibrath Express. “This year’s railway budget had nothing in it for the state. Hence, I took the case up with the Union minister and requested him to introduce new trains. The minister looked into the matter and has decided to give Jharkhand a new train from Ranchi to Bangalore” Sahay said in an e-mailed message to The Telegraph.The train, he claimed, will be introduced in the next financial year like the others.Members of the Chotanagpur Passengers’ Association, though not content, welcomed the move.“We thank the railway minister. However, we want other new trains to places like Haridawar and Ahmedabad,” Ashok Nagpal, vice-president of the Chotanagpur Passengers’ Association, said.The new train, when introduced, will come as a boon for passengers who at present take the bi-weekly (Sundays and Tuesdays) Hatia-Yeshwantpur Express.The new train will also incidentally be the first direct link between Ranchi and Hyderabad for passengers.who now have to go to Bhubaneswar before changing trains from there.Apart from this, the halt of the Rajdhani Express at Muri Junction, around 60km from Ranchi, is also likely to take the load of rush off the other trains like the Garibrath, Sampark Kranti and Jharkhand express which travel on that route.