RailEnquiry

UPA Chairperson and Congress President Sonia Gandhi will inaugurate a modern coach manufacturing factory in her Lok Sabha constituency Rae Barreli on Wednesday.

As Congress regained the vital railways portfolio after 16 years,the much delayed Rs 1,685 crore coach factory project will be put on fast track.The Rae Bareli coach factory is expected to cater to railways' increasing demand for coaches by annually rolling out about 1,000 coaches. Currently, the factory is engaged only in assembling coaches.  

The inauguration  was delayed for more than a year due to the vexed issue of compensation to farmers whose land was used for the factory.The issue is being settled now as railways have decided to provide jobs to all the affected land owners, said a senior Railway Ministry official.

Beside the inauguration, Sonia will also hand over appointment letters to farmers whose land was used for the project.

The country's largest public transporter had acquired 541 hectares of land for the coach manufacturing factory, out of which 283 hectares belonged to private land owners.

Railways have agreed to provide jobs to about 1,400 persons in compensation for the land acquired for the factory. Jobs will be given to the land owners in 'Group D' category.

Railways have just released Rs 150 crore for the factory against the demand for Rs 400 crore. The project received a push after the Railway Ministry came to Congress following the exit of Trinamool Congress from UPA whose representatives had held the key portfolio for the last three and half years.