JAJPUR: Former Finance Minister and senior BJD leader Prafulla Chandra Ghadai has demanded a new railway division at Jajpur Road. In a letter to Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, the septuagenarian leader also sought a new line between Dhamra port in Bhadrak and Jajpur-Keonjhar Road to provide rail connectivity to Jajpur town.
Established during the pre-Independence era in 1896, Jajpur-Keonjhar Road is a major railway station which has played an important role in both passenger and commercial sectors in Odisha and the country. “Jajpur Road is the gateway to Kalinga Nagar Industrial Complex, considered the steel hub of Asia.
The industrial complex has been declared a national investment and manufacturing zone by the Central Government. This apart, Sukinda Chromite Mining zone, which has 95 per cent chromium ore deposit in the country, is in close vicinity. A huge iron ore mine is also situated near the chromite mining valley,” Ghadai stated in his letter.
The Jajpur-Keonjhar Road railway station has always been dependent on Khurdha Road division, which is around 150 km away. The establishment of a railway division at Jajpur Road has been a long-standing demand of the local people, he said.
Besides, the senior BJD leader urged Vaishnaw to provide rail connectivity from Jajpur Road to Dhamra via Biraja temple and famous shaivite shrine Akhandalmani in Bhadrak’s Aradi for the greater interest of the people of both the districts.
Earlier, former Korei MLA Akash Dasnayak and Sukinda legislator Pritiranjan Ghadai had led several agitations demanding a railway division at Jajpur Road. Last Year, Jajpur MP Sarmistha Sethy had also raised the issue in Lok Sabha.