Assam CM meets Union Railway Minister, discusses expansion of rail networks

New Delhi, May 27 (IANS) Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday met Union Minister for Railways, Ashwini Vaishnaw, at Rail Bhawan in the national capital.

The Chief Minister discussed at length on mitigating legacy transport bottlenecks through expansion of railway infrastructure in the state and region, modernising technologies, improving data sharing, optimising workflows and embracing collaborations, an official said.

Railway Minister Vaishnaw acknowledged the fact that strengthening the railway infrastructure through expansion and improving existing infrastructure is vital to pave the way for building a logistics hub in Assam.

The meeting was attended by Assam Chief Secretary, Ravi Kota, Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister, K.K. Dwivedi, and Resident Commissioner, Assam Bhawan, Kavitha Padmanabhan.

“Always a pleasure to meet Hon’ble Minister Shri @AshwiniVaishnaw Ji. Today we spoke at length on several efforts to mitigate legacy transport bottlenecks and expand Assam’s rail infrastructure. These are crucial check marks as we plan to build a logistics hub in the State,” the Chief Minister wrote on X.

Meanwhile, in a move aimed at bolstering Assam’s energy infrastructure, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma held a meeting with Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy to deliberate on the state's coal and mineral requirements.

The meeting focused on enhancing Assam's self-sufficiency in energy production and natural resource management.

“Had a good meeting on securing Assam’s coal and mineral requirements with Hon’ble Union Minister Shri @kishanreddybjp Ji,” the Chief Minister wrote on X.

He highlighted three key areas of discussion: building seamless coal linkages for upcoming thermal power plants in the state, expanding operations at the Margherita coal mines, and exploring the extraction of new minerals.

The emphasis on coal linkages is seen as a critical step in ensuring uninterrupted fuel supply to Assam’s emerging thermal power infrastructure.

With the state looking to increase its power generation capacity, consistent coal supply chains will be vital.

Meanwhile, the planned expansion of the Margherita coal mines is expected to boost local coal production and generate employment in the region.

The Chief Minister also met Union Manohor Lal Khattar and discussed boosting energy infrastructure in the state.

“Had a productive discussion this evening with Hon’ble Minister Shri @mlkhattar Ji on strengthening Assam’s energy infrastructure. We deliberated on ensuring resource adequacy and accelerating the development of new power plants across the State,” the Chief Minister said.

--IANS

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