Karnataka: Congress to protest over Kolar coach factory

BENGALURU: The ruling BJP and opposition Congress are locking horns with each other over the railways' move to replace the proposed coach factory at Kolar with a repair workshop.
The railways' Pink Book, a budget document of detailed allocations of various projects and rail works, released on Wednesday, said Rs 495.3 crore was allocated for setting up a composite repair workshop in Kolar.
Former Union minister of state for railways and former Kolar MP KH Muniyappa stated that his party would intensify the demand for a railway coach factory as promised earlier.
He said it was a commitment given by the Union government in 2014 and the project proposal has been renewed up to 2024.
"Karnataka had agreed to provide 1,200 acres of land and to share half of the project cost of Rs 1,600 crore. The Centre shouldn't find it difficult to set up the factory here." He added the foundation stone has already been laid for the project and it is obligatory on the part of the Centre to set up the coach factory.
"We will organise a protest demanding setting up of the coach factory in Kolar. We will ensure that it happens," he added.
Senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge said, "I had got approval for the coach factory in Kolar. But I read in newspapers that the BJP government has decided to scrap it. I don't know why the Centre is indulging in such things."
Responding to the criticism over railways' move to replace the coach factory with a repair workshop, Union minister of state for railways Suresh C Angadi said, "Existing coach factories have surplus capacity to meet the domestic demand. We will convert the proposed unit in Kolar into a coach factory if there is any export demand for coaches from countries like Sri Lanka and Bangladesh."