Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Coal and Mines Pralhad Joshi flagged off the inaugural run of the Kalaburagi-Shri Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj Terminus Kolhapur Express (extension of Kalaburagi-Miraj Express) through videoconferencing on Friday.
Mr. Joshi said the Railways had achieved many milestones towards infrastructure development under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. About 30,446 km of railway line was electrified between 2014 and 2022, of which 6,366 km was electrified in the last one year; whereas only 4,337 km of electrification work was completed during the UPA-led government between 2007 and 2014.
He said that the Railways had completed track doubling on the 12,000 km stretch during 2014-2022, the then UPA government had achieved only 2,700 km of track doubling during 2007-2014. Indian Railways had strived to reach common people by providing fast, safe and comfortable travel to its passengers. The Minister also added that Coal India Limited (CIL) had planned to dispatch 700 million tonnes of coal in 2022-23.
Raosaheb Dadarao Patil Danve, Minister of State for Railways, Coal and Mines, said Vande Bharat trains were the future of Indian Railways and Kalaburagi-Kolhapur Express was one among them. Extending the run from Solapur to Kalaburagi in one direction and from Miraj to Kolhapur would greatly benefit traders, tourists, and mainly pilgrims travelling to Pandharpur, Miraj, and Kolhapur.
Timings
Train no. 22155 Kalaburagi-Shri Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj Terminus Kolhapur Express will leave Kalaburagi at 6.40 a.m. daily and reach Shri Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj terminus, Kolhapur, at 2.15 p.m. And train no. 22156 will depart from Kolhapur at 3.00 p.m. daily and arrive at Kalaburagi at 10.24 p.m.
Umesh Jadhav, MP, thanked Mr. Joshi for extending the Solapur-Miraj Express train service. The train provides direct connectivity between Kalaburagi, Pandharpur and Kolhapur and will benefit the people of Kalyana Karnataka region.
Dattatreya Patil Revoor, MLA, and Malikayya Guttedar BJP leader were present.
