President Droupadi Murmu flagged off three trains from the Badampahar railway station in the Mayurbhanj district of Odisha on Tuesday. Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and other railway officials were also present at the ceremony. According to a railway official, these trains will connect tribal areas with bigger cities and give a huge boost to the local economy, access to healthcare and tribal tourism, among others.
These are three newly inaugurated trains:
- Shalimar-Badampahar Weekly Express: The first ever express train connecting Shalimar near Kolkata in West Bengal with Badampahar in Odisha.
- Badampahar-Rourkela Weekly Express: It will connect the mineral-rich areas of Badampahar with Rourkela, the Steel City of India.
- Tatanagar-Badampahar MEMU train: This train will be important for daily commuters as it will run six days a week except Sunday.
First express train in 91 years in President Murmu's home district
Following the inauguration, Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said it is for the first time in 91 years that this area has come up on the Railways map and express trains have started. "Providing connectivity to the tribal areas of the country is Modi govt's priority. These three trains will benefit the mineral-rich areas in many ways," he told news agency PTI.
These regions fall under the South Eastern Railway (SER) zone, which stated that these trains will run through industrial and mineral-rich areas and speed up communication. It further mentioned that residents in the surrounding areas would be able to use this train service to travel to larger cities for various purposes.
South Eastern Railway's statements
"It will benefit students and job aspirants by providing easy access to the premier educational institutes and corporate houses," an official from the South Eastern Railway (SER) said. The officials said that students and job aspirants of the Badampahar and Rairangpur areas will have easy access to the premier educational institutes and corporate houses of the Kolkata and Howrah areas.
Besides providing better connectivity to boost the growth and development of the Mayurbhanj district of Odisha, these new trains will also encourage tourists from West Bengal and Jharkhand to explore and enjoy the picturesque landscape and dense forest of northeastern parts of Odisha. The President also laid the foundation stone of the redevelopment of Badampahar Railway Station under the Amrit Station Scheme.
(With inputs from agencies)
