Proposed railway line project for Nuh kept in abeyance, reveals RTI reply

A reply to a Right to Information (RTI) application has revealed that the proposed 104-km railway route from Delhi to Alwar in Rajasthan via Haryana’s Nuh has been “kept in abeyance” by the Railway Board, dashing hopes for a railway connectivity anytime soon for the most-backward region in Haryana.

Falling within the National Capital Region, Nuh figures on the Niti Aayog’s list of 112 Aspirational Districts – the most underdeveloped districts across the country – and railway connectivity remains one of the long-standing demands of this region. Though various governments have supported the demand, little progress has been made on the ground.

In reply to an RTI application filed by social activist Rajuddin Meo, a resident of Nuh’s Ghaghas village, the Northern Railway said, “The project is in the list of projects which are kept in abeyance as per letter issued by Rly Board.”

The survey for the Delhi-Sohan-Nuh-Ferozepur Jhirka-Alwar was completed in 2012-13 and the project was sanctioned the following financial year. The original cost of the project is ₹1,239 crore and comprises 14 stations. It is expected to reduce road traffic and also contribute to socio-economic development of Mewat region, comprising Meo Muslim- dominated areas in Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan.

The Haryana Public Relations Department, in a press statement on February 4 last year, had quoted Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav saying that work was currently under way on 14 new railway tracks in Haryana and ₹15,875 crore would be spent on laying 1,195 km of new tracks, including the Delhi-Sohna-Nuh-Firozpur Jhirka-Alwar railway track, among others.
In response to a query from The Hindu, Union Minister of State for Planning and Gurgaon MP Rao Inderjit Singh said according to information previously received from the railways, a provision of approximately ₹1 crore had been made in the budget for the Delhi-Sohna-Alwar railway line, and an account had been opened for it. The project had also been approved by the Railway Board, he said, adding that further information would be sought from the railways soon based on the information received through the RTI plea.

Saying that railway connectivity has remained a “distant dream for the patriotic region of Mewat”, Rajuddin, convenor, Mewat RTI Manch, said, “A railway network has been laid around Nuh district since Independence, but the sound of a train whistle is yet to be heard in this region. The RTI response contradicts the government’s promises. Prime Minister Narendra Modi should lay a railway line in Nuh, and the Nayab Saini government in Haryana should also co-operate in this endeavour.”