Bullet train project delayed by 50 years until Modi came: Goyal
New Delhi, July 25 : Claiming that Railways was used for "political reasons" earlier, Railways Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday slammed the previous governments for not being able to bring the Bullet Train.
"Earlier, Railways was used for political reasons. So many schemes were announced, but there was scarcity of budget to work on all the schemes. We ensured that wherever the land is available and the work is important, it is being done on a priority basis.
"Our plan is to have separate toilets for men and women, water facilities, upgraded waiting rooms and other facilities in every station in the country," he told the Lok Sabha in response to a question.
"The Prime Minister has a vision to make India a technology power so that people get world-class facilities. The bullet train technology has arrived in India after a delay of 50 years because Prime Minister Narendra Modi has come now."
"We got a loan of Rs 1.08 lakh crore for 50 years at an interest of 0.1 per cent from Japan. We want to develop a network of speed rail in the country.
"The government also ensured transfer of technology, so that it helps in 'Make in India' and contributes in improving the economy," he added.
Hitting out at the Congress, Goyal said: "They should be happy that the bullet train project which they could not implement, this government is doing it. The money which they couldn't bring, we got it at a minimal interest."
"The pace at which the work of track maintenance is being done now in one year, that was never possible in three years of UPA government. During 2012-13, only 800 kms of electrification was done, while we electrified 4,100 kms last year. We also laid 4,500 kms of new tracks in a year," he said to a question by Congress' Mallikarjun Kharge on bullet trains, doubling of tracks, electrification and laying of new tracks.
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Bridge portion collapses on Jammu outskirts; 3-4 labourers feared trapped, 1 rescued
Jammu (PTI): A portion of a small bridge collapsed in the Bantalab area on the outskirts of Jammu city on Friday, trapping at least three to four labourers under the debris, while one injured worker was rescued, official sources said.
Authorities have closed the road link following the collapse of the portion of the bridge.
The incident occurred when labourers were carrying out repair work on a retaining wall near the bridge that was damaged in last year's flash floods, the sources said.
According to the sources, a section of the bridge suddenly gave way, burying workers engaged at the site under the rubble.
Police, Army and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams launched rescue operations to extricate those buried under the debris. They pulled out one injured labourer and shifted him to a hospital, the sources said.
Family members of the labourers present at the site said around six workers engaged at the site at the time of the incident came under the debris when the structure collapsed. The family members said while two of the labourers managed to escape, four got trapped.
The sources said those trapped included the husband of a woman labourer, a mason, an unmarried labourer and a relative of the contractor.
There was no official confirmation on the exact number of persons trapped under the debris till the filing of this report.
The rescue operations are ongoing.
