Indian Railways (IR) has approved a 38.21-km new rail line between Mukutban near Adilabad and Gadchandur in South Central Railway (SCR) at a cost of ₹493 crore. Mukutban in Yavatmal district and Gadchandur in Chandrapur district are important industrial and mining centres, serving several cement plants, coal mines of Western Coalfields Ltd. and nearby limestone mines.
As per the Detailed Project Report, the project is likely to support 6.08 MTPA (million tonnes per annum)of freight traffic, along with two MEMU trains in each direction per day post commissioning.
Shorter route
The new rail line will provide a shorter alternative rail route between Adilabad and Manikgarh and de-congest the existing Wardha-Manikgarh section, supporting smoother movement of freight traffic.
The new line will provide direct connectivity between the coal and cement cluster and the Majri-Nanded route, facilitating shorter leads for coal, cement and RMSP (raw material for steel plants) traffic towards Jalna, Parbhani, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and other destinations in Maharashtra and Karnataka.The line will also carry metal scrap, fertilisers and food grains.
The project will reduce dependence on the congested Balharshah-Nagpur High-Density Network (HDN) route, while improving rail connectivity to the relatively less-connected areas of Yavatmal and Chandrapur districts.