Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the Union Cabinet’s approval of four railway multitracking projects worth ₹24,634 crore as an important step towards enhancing infrastructure and connectivity in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Chhattisgarh. The projects will add about 894 kilometres of new rails to the Indian Railways network, with completion scheduled for 2030-31.

The approved sections include the Wardha-Bhusawal third and fourth lines in Maharashtra, the Gondia-Dongargarh fourth line covering Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh at ₹2,223 crore, the Vadodara-Ratlam third and fourth lines across Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh at ₹8,885 crore, and the Itarsi-Bhopal-Bina fourth line in Madhya Pradesh valued at ₹4,329 crore. These roads will benefit 18 districts and roughly 3,600 villages, totalling over 8.5 million people, including the aspirational districts of Vidisha and Rajnandgaon.

According to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, the projects are aligned with the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan and will increase capacity on the country’s busiest lines, which account for around 41% of overall railway traffic. Once completed, the lines are estimated to handle an additional 78 million tonnes of freight each year, reducing oil imports by 28 crore litres and lowering carbon emissions by 139 crore kg.