Title - Abohar-Fazilka train chugs off, finally Minister of State for Railways KH Muniyappa inaugurates the

Abohar : The much-awaited rail link between Abohar and Fazilka was inaugurated today by Minister of State for Railways KH Muniyappa with the flagging off a passenger train.The 42 km-long rail link built at a cost of Rs 225 crore connects areas in the border areas of Rajasthan, Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir.Muniyappa said the Centre was keen to link more areas via rail for which the assistance of the state governments concerned was a must.He said the Maharashatra, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka Governments shared 50 per cent of the cost incurred on constructing rail overbridges and underbridges. Punjab too should do the same, he suggested.The Union Minister said the delay in completion of rail projects was normal as it involved land acquisition. This in turn resulted in escalation of the project cost.Muniyappa said the Centre was keen to restore the traditional rail link between Fazilka and Karachi in Pakistan. This would bring economic prosperity to the border areas of the two countries. Pakistan had already been approached in the issue.He said work on the Ludhiana-Chandigarh rail link would be further accelerated to help move foodgrain to other parts of the country.Groupism in the Congress came to the fore during the inaugural ceremony. While CLP Leader Sunil Jakhar and Congress MLA Rana Gurmeet Sodhi shared the dais with the Union Minister, party stalwarts Jagmeet Singh Brar and Virender Kataria chose to sit with the audience, even when invited by Muniyappa to the dais.Kataria said those who had done nothing for the project had hogged the limelight. Muniyappa, who had breakfast at Kataria’s residence, later went to Jakhar’s house from where he drove to the railway station.Jakhar urged the Union Minister to introduce air-conditioned goods trains to carry kinnow from Abohar and Fazilka to markets in the South. He also demanded that the frequency of the train to Nanded Sahib and Vaishno Devi be increased to thrice a week. Rana Gurmeet Singh demanded more trains between Chandigarh and New Delhi.SAD MP Sher Singh Ghubaya, Forest Minister Surjeet Kumar Jiyani and MLA Gurtej Singh also spoke on the occasion.There was jubilation as the train chugged into Fazilka. People from the town and surrounding areas thronged the railway station.Jiyani and Ghubaya travelled to Fazilka in the inaugural train. Kataria and Brar sat with commuters in a separate coach. Kataria flagged off the train in its return journey. The Abohar-Fazilka rail line has five railway stations. The rail line includes 106 bridges, four major and 102 minor, and 27 level crossings.

(With inputs by Praful Chander Nagpal and Raj Sadosh)

LONG-AWAITED LINK
* The 42-km link has been built at a cost of Rs 225 cr
* It connects border areas in the states of Rajasthan, Punjab and Jammu-Kashmir
* Work on the Ludhiana-Chandigarh link to be further accelerated to move foodgrain, says Union Minister
* The Abohar-Fazilka rail line has five railway stations and includes 106 bridges

GROUPISM TO FORE
* CLP Leader Sunil Jakhar and Congress MLA Rana Gurmeet Sodhi shared the dais with the Union Minister
* Party stalwarts Jagmeet Singh Brar and Virender Kataria were seated among the audience
* They refused to come on stage even when invited by the Union Minister
* Kataria said those who had done nothing for the project had hogged the limelight