Cabinet clears Rs 10,783 crore rail-capacity package across five states
Three multitracking projects are intended to add 656 kilometres of capacity across eastern and central India by 2029-30.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved three Ministry of Railways multitracking projects costing about Rs 10,783 crore, with completion planned by 2029-30.
The package includes a fourth line from Kharagpur to Jharsuguda at Bagdehi, a fourth line from Katni to Pendra Road and a third line from Bilaspur at Uslapur to Pendra Road. Together, the projects add about 656 kilometres across 14 districts and are projected by the government to support 27 million tonnes of additional freight each year.
Why it matters
Additional capacity on coal, cement, iron and steel corridors could reduce rail bottlenecks and support industrial logistics across eastern and central India.
SCULTRA point of view
The programme should be tracked project by project through land acquisition, tendering, cost, completion milestones, utilisation and realised freight capacity rather than aggregate projections alone.
Limitations
Traffic, oil-saving and emissions figures are advance government projections. The release does not provide project-level financing, benefit-cost analysis or construction-risk detail.
Source: Press Information Bureau / Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, 9 September 2026.