Will the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar–Ahilyanagar rail project be shelved?

Lokmat News Network

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar

Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis’s announcement in Nagpur on Sunday that the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar–Pune railway line will run along the Pune highway has triggered uncertainty over the fate of the recently proposed Sambhajinagar–Ahilyanagar route.

The Rs 2,235-crore project, featuring a double-track electrified line over 85 km, has already been sent to the Centre for approval. But with talks now shifting to a highway-side alignment, railway unions and experts fear the existing plan could be sidelined.

‘New route will slow trains, raise costs’

“Changing the Sambhajinagar–Ahilyanagar alignment will mean unnecessary expenses, longer distance to Pune, ghat and tunnel challenges, and possibly a single line instead of a double—compromising speed and freight capacity,” said Pralhad Partkar, secretary, Marathwada Railway Action Committee.

‘CM given wrong brief’

“The current 80–85 km flat-terrain route needs no ghats or tunnels. The highway plan via Paithan stretches it to 130–140 km, adding ghats that railways can’t share with roads. Even a joint tunnel in Autram Ghat was rejected earlier. It seems the CM was wrongly briefed,” said railway analyst Swanand Solanke.