The Centre recently announced plans to upgrade seven high-density routes – Delhi-Howrah, Howrah-Chennai, Chennai-Mumbai, Mumbai-Delhi, Delhi-Chennai, Mumbai-Howrah and Delhi-Guwahati – into four-line corridors to improve passenger and freight movement, the minister said in a statement.
Patil said Karnataka also has several high-density routes, including Bengaluru-Pune-Mumbai, Bengaluru-Mysuru, Bengaluru-Mangaluru, Bengaluru-Chennai, Bengaluru-Shivamogga, Bengaluru-Vijayapura and Bengaluru-Kalaburagi, which should be developed as four-track corridors.
He said he would urge chief minister Siddaramaiah to write to the Centre and seek a meeting with Union railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw to raise the issue.
Patil also flagged inadequate rail connectivity between Karnataka’s coastal towns, including Mangaluru, Bhatkal, Honnavar, Kundapura and Karwar, and major centres such as Bengaluru, Shivamogga and Hubballi.
Karnataka has a 330-km coastline and better rail connectivity to its coastal ports is needed to improve links with the hinterland, Patil said. The lack of rail capacity has also put additional pressure on the state’s highways, he said.
He also said that the Centre’s plan for high-speed rail links between Bengaluru and Chennai and Bengaluru and Hyderabad, would have limited coverage within Karnataka. Patil further added that he had sought a high-speed rail corridor between Bengaluru, Hubballi and Pune.The state is willing to share 50% of the cost of railway projects to speed up their implementation, Patil said, adding that Karnataka was not receiving the same priority as Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.
The minister also said that the centre did not respond positively to his proposal for the development of a high-speed rail corridor on the Bengaluru-Hubballi-Pune route.
He urged MPs from Karnataka, including those from the BJP, to raise the state’s railway infrastructure demands with the Centre and said development issues should not be politicised.
