Tirupati: Minister for railways Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu gave an assurance that the railways would take proper care of Andhra Pradesh and plans were being formulated for infrastructural development in the state. He was addressing a large gathering at Tirupati after unveiling the plaque to lay the foundation stone for the new crossing station at Tiruchanoor on Saturday. The railway minister said that infrastructure was key to the growth of a state and the railways played an important role in this. He also said that he was holding a meeting with Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh N. Chandrababu Naidu later in the day to formulate rail developmental plans for the state at which members of the Railway Board, New Delhi, and general manager, South Central Railways, (SCR) would also be present.
The railway minister expressed his happiness at the development of Tiruchanoor, between Renigunta and Tirupati as a crossing station, which would enable decongestion of train movement in Tirupati. The holy city of Tirupati was on the priority list for rail development and in the next month or so, a concrete plan would be framed, Mr Prabhu said. Elaborating on the Indian Railways' mission, Mr Prabhu said that it was set to invest Rs 1.21 lakh crore towards infrastructural growth during the current fiscal, way ahead of the years prior to 2014. The target is to complete 19 km of new railway line each day in the next two years, he added, expressing gratitude for the support extended by members of Parliament towards implementation of these growth plans.
Earlier, in his welcome address, Ravindra Gupta, general manager, South Central Railway, spoke on the zone's plans for development of the railways in the region. He acknowledged the initiative of the minister for railways in upgrading Tiruchanoor as a crossing station that would make rail services in Tirupati smoother, SCR being committed to delivering qualitative service to rail users. The function was attended by AP forest minister B. Gopalakrishna Reddy, health minister Kamineni Srinivas, Chittoor ZP Chairman Geervani Chandra Prakash, Tirupati MP Dr V. Vara Prasada Rao, Chittoor MP N. Sivaprasad, Rajahmundry MP M. Murali Mohan, Narasapuram MP Gokaraju Gangaraju, MLC Y. Srinivasulu Reddy and TTD Chairman Chadalawada Krishnamurthy. A host of other public representatives, dignitaries and senior railway officials were also present.
