Raiganj, Jan. 23 -- In a significant development for North Bengal, the Calcutta High Court has reportedly directed the Railway authorities to expedite the long-pending construction of the Gajole-Dalkhola railway line via Itahar and Raiganj. The order came in response to a public interest suit filed in 2023 by Anjan Roy, a Raiganj-based businessman and member of the West Dinajpur Chamber of Commerce.
The proposed railway track, passing through Gajole in Malda district and connecting Dalkhola in North Dinajpur, is expected to benefit residents of North Dinajpur, South Dinajpur and Malda districts. Following the court's order, widespread happiness was observed among local residents, who have been demanding the completion of the project for over a decade.
According to Anjan Roy, the project was originally approved and funds were allocated in the Railway Budget of 2010, when Mamata Banerjee was the Union Railway Minister. A year later, a survey was conducted and around Rs 272 crore was provided to the North Dinajpur district administration for land acquisition. However, the work failed to progress and the project was eventually postponed after several years.
Roy said that repeated efforts were made to revive the project. A delegation of the West Dinajpur Chamber of Commerce, along with then Raiganj MP Debasree Chaudhury, met Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and demanded resumption of land acquisition, but the request did not yield results.
In 2023, Roy collected public signatures and approached the Calcutta High Court for intervention. On Thursday, the court directed the Railways to complete the long-delayed project.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.