On 18th September, 2020 Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the historic Kosi Rail Mahasetu (mega bridge) in Bihar.
Other projects including a new railway bridge on the Kiul River, two new railway lines, 5 Electrification projects, Bihar’s first Electric Locomotive Shed at Barauni and 3rd Line Project between Barh-Bakhtiyarpur in Bihar through video conference.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Phagu Chauhan, Governor of Bihar, Minister of Railways, Piyush Goyal were present during the inauguration.
Kosi Rail mega bridge:
i.The mega bridge is 1.9 kms long and has been completed at a cost of Rs. 516 Crores connecting Mithila and Kosi region.The opening of the bridge will fulfill the 86 year old dream of the people of Bihar.
ii.The bridge would reduce the rail distance between Nirmali and Saraigarh from the present 298 kilometers to 22 kilometers. It is also a strategically important project as it is situated near the India-Nepal border.
iii.The Kosi Mega Bridge was sanctioned by the Government of India during 2003-04, it was completed during the COVID-19 Pandemic with the participation of the migrant labourers.
Background:
A meter gauge link was built in 1887 between Nirmali and Bhaptiahi (Saraigarh), but it was washed away due to the heavy flood and Indo Nepal earthquake in 1934.
Quick Overview of Other Inaugurations
Flagging of Demu Train: The Prime Minister flagged off an Diesel-Electric Multiple Unit (DEMU) Train from Supaul Railway Station on Saharsa-Adampur-Kupaha section.
Inauguration of Two New Railway Lines:
i.The Two new inaugurated railway lines are Hajipur-Ghoswar-Vaishali section, Islampur-Natesar section.
ii.He also inaugurated the Karnauti – Bakthiarpur link bypass and 3rd Railway Line between Barh-Bakthiarpur.
iii.The new railway lines will increase the ease of coal transportation to National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Barh from Banadag siding in Jharkhand. It will also decongest the Delhi-Howrah Trunk route.
Railway Electrification Projects:
i.The list of Railway electrification projects which were inaugurated include Muzaffarpur-Sitamarhi sections, Katihar-New Jalpaiguri, Samastipur-Khagaria, Bhagalpur-Shivnarayanpur and Samastipur-Jaynagar sections.
ii.The electrification of Katihar-New Jalpaiguri will ensure railway connectivity to North East states on Electric traction. It will boost the economy of NE states and bring the Northeast Frontier Railway at par with other electrified railways.
Inauguration of Kiul Bridge and Kiul Yard:
i.The 150-year old Kiul Bridge has been rebuilt to provide seamless traffic.
ii.The Kiul Yard has been remodeled by replacing the old mechanical lever frame with an electronic interlocking system.
iii.The trains will be able to run at the speed of 125 kilometers per hour on this entire route.
iv.Electronic interlocking will ease the movement of trains on the main line from Howrah-Delhi, and would make the route faster and safe.
Bihar’s first Electric Locomotive Maintenance Shed
Bihar’s first and only Electric Locomotive Maintenance Shed in Barauni was inaugurated by the Prime Minister.
Recent Related News:
i.On 18th August 2020, Flipkart signed a Memorandum of understanding(MoU) with Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Patna to support the industry focused applied research in the fields like Artificial Intelligence(AI), Natural Language Processing(NLP) and Machine Learning(ML).
ii.On August 2, 2020 Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar released a book titled, “Siyasat Mein Sadasyata” authored by Bihar Assembly Speaker Vijay Kumar Choudhary. It is compiled and edited by senior journalist Arvind Sharma and its preface has been written by another senior journalist Vinod Bandhu.
About Bihar:
Dam – Kohira Dam (Kohira River) & Nagi Dam (Nagi River)
Lakes – Kanwar Lake (Garhpura), Muchalinda Lake (Mocharim Bodhgaya), GhoraKatora Lake (near Rajgir)
