Jajpur: Hundreds of people under the aegis of Biraja Kshetra Vikas Parishad (BKVP) have demanded construction of a new railway line from Jajpur-Keonjhar road in the district to Dhamara port in neighbouring Bhadrak district connecting the Jajpur district headquarters town.
"The district headquarters town lacks railway connectivity. People of the district headquarters town and its nearby areas have to travel 30km to 40 km to catch a train," said BKVP president Tapan Maharanya Sharma.
People of Bari, Binjharpur and Dasarathapur blocks in the district will be benefited from the proposed railway connectivity as...
more... they have to travel at least 50km to reach the nearby railway station at Jajpur-Keonjhar road, Sharma said.
People of the district headquarters town had been demanding the railway connectivity to their areas for the past two decades, he said.
Expressing concern over the apathy of the Union government towards the lack railway connectivity in Jajpur, civil society members and local residents here had sought intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Union railway minister Suresh Prabhu, the Union minister of petroleum and natural gas Dharmendra Pradhan, chief minister Naveen Pattanaik and MPs and local MLAs. "Considering the stance of the Union government that the Indian railway will be connected to each district and its headquarters town of the country, we demand a railway line between Jajpur-Keonjhar road to Dhamara port via the district headquarters town," said Raj Kishore Panda, who spearheaded a public awareness drive on the issue.
This apart, a number of local residents initiated a signature campaign to press for their demand.