Date: 2025-09-10Category: Not ApplicableState: Union GovernmentCountry: India
Cabinet approves doubling of Bhagalpur – Dumka – Rampurhat single railway line section (177 Km) in Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal with total cost of Rs. 3,169 Crore
**Summary:**
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime Minister, has approved the doubling of the 177 km Bhagalpur-Dumka-Rampurhat single railway line section, spanning Bihar, Jharkhand, and West Bengal. The project, with an estimated cost of Rs. 3,169 crore, aims to enhance line capacity, improve mobility, reduce congestion, and provide infrastructural development on this busy Indian Railways section.
Aligned with the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan, the project focuses on multimodal connectivity and logistic efficiency. It will improve connectivity for approximately 28.72 lakh people across 441 villages and three Aspirational Districts (Banka, Godda, and Dumka). The project also provides rail connectivity to pilgrimage sites such as Deoghar Baba Baidyanath Dham and Tarapith Shakti Peeth, attracting pilgrims and tourists.
The doubled line will facilitate the transportation of commodities such as coal, cement, fertilizers, bricks, and stones, and is expected to result in an additional freight traffic of 15 Million Tonnes Per Annum (MTPA). The project is also expected to contribute to environmental goals by reducing oil imports by 5 Crore Litres and lowering CO2 emissions by 24 Crore Kg, equivalent to planting One Crore trees. The Ministry of Railways released this information on September 10, 2025.
Key Entities Referenced
Indian Railways: The state-owned railway company of India.
Bhagalpur Dumka Rampurhat: A railway line section connecting the cities of Bhagalpur, Dumka and Rampurhat.
Bihar: A state in India where the railway line passes through.
Jharkhand: A state in India where the railway line passes through.
West Bengal: A state in India where the railway line passes through.
Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs: A committee of the Indian government responsible for economic affairs.
Shri Narendra Modi: The Prime Minister of India.
PMGati Shakti National Master Plan: A national master plan for enhancing multimodal connectivity and logistic efficiency in India.
Ministry of Railways
Cabinet approves doubling of Bhagalpur – Dumka –
Rampurhat single railway line section (177 Km) in
Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal with total cost of
Rs. 3,169 Crore
Posted On: 10 SEP 2025 3:08PM by PIB Delhi
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi today has
approved the doubling of Bhagalpur – Dumka - Rampurhat single railway line Section (177 km) in Bihar,
Jharkhand and West Bengal with total cost of Rs.3,169 crore (approx.).
The enhanced line capacity will improve mobility, providing enhanced efficiency and service reliability for
Indian Railways. The multi-tracking proposal will ease operations and reduce congestion, providing the
much-required infrastructural development on the busiest sections across Indian Railways. The projects are in
line with the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modiji’s vision of a New India which will make people of the
region “Atmanirbhar” by way of comprehensive development in the area which will enhance their
employment/ self-employment opportunities.
The projects are planned on PM-Gati Shakti National Master Plan with focus on enhancing multi-modal
connectivity & logistic efficiency through integrated planning and stakeholder consultations. These projects
will provide seamless connectivity for movement of people, goods, and services.
The project covering five Districts in three states i.e. Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal will increase the
existing network of Indian Railways by about 177 Kms.
Project section also provides rail connectivity to prominent destinations such as Deoghar (Baba Baidyanath
Dham), Tarapith (Shakti Peeth) etc. attracting pilgrims and tourists from across the country.
Multi-tracking projects will enhance connectivity to approx. 441 villages and about 28.72 lakh population and
three Aspirational Districts (Banka, Godda and Dumka).
This is an essential route for transportation of commodities such as coal, cement, fertilizers, bricks and stones
etc. The capacity augmentation works will result in additional freight traffic of magnitude 15 MTPA (Million
Tonnes Per Annum). The Railways being environment friendly and energy efficient mode of transportation,
will help both in achieving climate goals and minimizing logistics cost of the country, reduce oil import (5
Crore Litres) and lower CO2 emissions (24 Crore Kg) which is equivalent to plantation of 1 (One) Crore
trees.
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MJPS/BM
(Release ID: 2165249)