DPR On Cross-Border Rail Project Prepared

The final Detailed Project Report (DPR) of the proposed 18.5 kmcross-border railway line has been submitted by India. The proposed railwayline will be constructed from Rupaidiya and Nepal's Kohalpur.

According to the report, the railway track will start from Rupaidiya Railway Station and pass through Jayaspur, Indrapur, Guruwa Gaun, Hawaldalpur, Rajhena and end in Kohalpur in Nepal. The DPR is a micro-planning tool that typically provides the project rationale, summary, user specifications, engineering designs of main and support infrastructure, as well as technical and financial aspects including financial sustainability.

The proposed railway track will run parallel as per the DPR and between the East-West Highway and the Postal Highway. India has already helped the Government of Nepal in the construction of the Postal Highways which started in 2016.

According to a railway department engineer, Kiran Karki who wasquoted by the Himalayan Times said that constructing the railway above theEast-West Highway means clearing a huge swathe of national parks to make wayfor laying the railway track. And therefore, the project report has beendevised in such a way that the sanctuaries remain safe.

According to the DPR, the railway line will be constructed two to three kilometers away from the East-West Highway. Officials at the Railway Department have said that 750-km-long railway network will be developed in five years, the paper reported.