Parliament Question: Demand/Availability of Rail Capacity

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1965 TO BE ANSWERED ON 11.02.2026 DEMAND/AVAILABILITY OF RAIL CAPACITY 1965. SHRI MALVINDER SINGH KANG: Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state: (a) whether the Government has undertaken any corridor-wise assessment of passenger demand versus available rail capacity in northern Punjab, particularly on routes connecting Anandpur Sahib, Rupnagar, Una and Nangal with major urban centres and if so, the details thereof; (b) the details of new train services, frequency augmentation or rake rationalisation proposed or under consideration for these routes during the period 2024–26; (c) whether constraints relating to single-line sections, platform length or signalling upgradation have been identified as limiting factors for service expansion in this region and if so, the details thereof; and (d) the details of the steps taken or proposed to be taken to improve rail- based access for pilgrims and daily commuters in the Anandpur Sahib region in view of recurring congestion during peak periods? ANSWER MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW) (a) to (d): Indian Railways regularly carry out passenger demand and capacity assessments across the railway network. Based on such assessments, additional train services including special trains are introduced/operated to meet the passenger demand. As the Railway network straddles across State boundaries, trains are introduced, as per network requirement, across such boundaries. Presently, Anandpur Sahib, Rupnagar, Una Himachal and Nangal Dam stations are catered by 28 train services, 26 train services, 18 train services and 26 train services respectively as listed below: …2/- §-:2:- Anandpur Sahib: SN Train no. and name 1 12057 New Delhi - Daulatpur Chowk Jan Shatabdi Express 2 12058 Daulatpur Chowk-New Delhi Jan Shatabdi Express 3 12325 Kolkata – Nangal Dam Gurumukhi Express 4 12326 Nangal Dam – Kolkata Gurumukhi Express 5 14053 Delhi – Daulatpur Chowk Himachal Express 6 14054 Daulatpur Chowk-Delhi Himachal Express 7 14505 Amritsar-Nangal Dam Express 8 14506 Nangal Dam-Amritsar Express 9 19307 Indore-Una Himachal Express 10 19308 Una Himachal-Indore Express 11 19411 Gandhinagar Capital - Daulatpur Chowk Express 12 19412 Daulatpur Chowk-Gandhinagar Capital Express 13 22447 New Delhi-Amb Andaura Vande Bharat Express 14 22448 Amb Andaura-New Delhi Vande Bharat Express 15 22709 Hazur Sahib Nanded - Amb Andaura Express 16 22710 Amb Andaura-Hazur Sahib Nanded Express 17 64511 Haridwar - Amb Andaura MEMU 18 64512 Amb Andaura - Haridwar MEMU 19 64515 Ambala Cantt - Nangal Dam MEMU 20 64516 Nangal Dam - Ambala Cantt MEMU 21 64517 Ambala Cantt - Nangal Dam MEMU 22 64518 Nangal Dam - Ambala Cantt MEMU 23 64563 Raipur Haryana - Amb Andaura MEMU 24 64564 Amb Andaura - Raipur Haryana MEMU 25 74991 Ambala Cantt. - Daulatpur Chowk DEMU 26 74992 Daulatpur Chowk - Ambala Cantt DEMU 27 64513 Saharanpur - Nangal Dam MEMU 28 64514 Nangal Dam - Ambala Cantt MEMU …3/--:3:- Rupnagar and Nangal Dam: SN Train no. and name 1 12057 New Delhi - Daulatpur Chowk Jan Shatabdi Express 2 12058 Daulatpur Chowk-New Delhi Jan Shatabdi Express 3 12325 Kolkata – Nangal Dam Gurumukhi Express 4 12326 Nangal Dam – Kolkata Gurumukhi Express 5 14053 Delhi – Daulatpur Chowk Himachal Express 6 14054 Daulatpur Chowk-Delhi Himachal Express 7 14505 Amritsar-Nangal Dam Express 8 14506 Nangal Dam-Amritsar Express 9 19307 Indore-Una Himachal Express 10 19308 Una Himachal-Indore Express 11 19411 Gandhinagar Capital - Daulatpur Chowk Express 12 19412 Daulatpur Chowk-Gandhinagar Capital Express 13 22709 Hazur Sahib Nanded - Amb Andaura Express 14 22710 Amb Andaura-Hazur Sahib Nanded Express 15 64511 Haridwar - Amb Andaura MEMU 16 64512 Amb Andaura - Haridwar MEMU 17 64515 Ambala Cantt - Nangal Dam MEMU 18 64516 Nangal Dam - Ambala Cantt MEMU 19 64517 Ambala Cantt - Nangal Dam MEMU 20 64518 Nangal Dam - Ambala Cantt MEMU 21 64563 Raipur Haryana - Amb Andaura MEMU 22 64564 Amb Andaura - Raipur Haryana MEMU 23 74991 Ambala Cantt. - Daulatpur Chowk DEMU 24 74992 Daulatpur Chowk - Ambala Cantt DEMU 25 64513 Saharanpur - Nangal Dam MEMU 26 64514 Nangal Dam - Ambala Cantt MEMU …4/--:4:- Una Himachal: SN Train no. and name 1 12057 New Delhi - Daulatpur Chowk Jan Shatabdi Express 2 12058 Daulatpur Chowk-New Delhi Jan Shatabdi Express 3 14053 Delhi – Daulatpur Chowk Himachal Express 4 14054 Daulatpur Chowk-Delhi Himachal Express 5 19307 Indore-Una Himachal Express 6 19308 Una Himachal-Indore Express 7 19411 Gandhinagar Capital - Daulatpur Chowk Express 8 19412 Daulatpur Chowk-Gandhinagar Capital Express 9 22447 New Delhi-Amb Andaura Vande Bharat Express 10 22448 Amb Andaura-New Delhi Vande Bharat Express 11 22709 Hazur Sahib Nanded - Amb Andaura Express 12 22710 Amb Andaura-Hazur Sahib Nanded Express 13 64511 Haridwar - Amb Andaura MEMU 14 64512 Amb Andaura - Haridwar MEMU 15 64563 Raipur Haryana - Amb Andaura MEMU 16 64564 Amb Andaura - Raipur Haryana MEMU 17 74991 Ambala Cantt. - Daulatpur Chowk DEMU 18 74992 Daulatpur Chowk - Ambala Cantt DEMU During 2024-2026, the following train services have been extended to cater to the passengers of the Rupnagar-Anandpur Sahib-Nangal Dam-Una Himachal sector: 1 Extension of 19307/19308 Indore-Chandigarh Express upto Una Himachal w.e.f 14.03.2024 2 Extension of 64511/64512 Saharanpur-Una Himachal Passenger to Amb Andaura w.e.f 19.07.2025. Indian Railways have issued ‘Bharat Gaurav Trains’ policy in November 2021, under which theme based tourist circuit trains are being run with the …5/--:5:- objective to showcase India’s rich cultural heritage and magnificent historical places to the people of India and the world. As per this policy, service providers have full flexibility to decide the themes/itineraries for operation of Bharat Gaurav tourist circuit trains, which may include tourist circuits of any part of India including the state of Punjab, based on market demand, commercial viability etc. As of now, one trip of Bharat Gaurav Train “Guru Kripa Yatra” has been operated covering various pilgrimage destinations in Punjab including Sri Keshgarh Sahib in the Anandpur Sahib region. Besides, introduction of train services/increase in frequency are on-going processes on Indian Railways which depends on various factors including - • Capacity of that section • Availability of path • Availability of required rolling stock • Availability of matching infrastructure for rolling stock • Maintenance requirement of railway tracks and other assets Rail network expansion in Punjab To improve rail connectivity in Northern Punjab, Nangaldam – Talwara – Mukerian new line (123 km) was sanctioned. 60 km of this project connecting Nangal Dam - Una - Andaura - Daulatpur Chowk section has been commissioned. Work of Daulatpur Chowk – Talwara – Mukerian section has been taken up. Also work of Chandigarh-Baddi New Line (28 Km) has also been taken up at a cost of Rs. 1540 crore. To further extend this line, survey for Baddi- Ghanauli New Line (25 Km) has been completed and Detailed Project Report (DPR) has been prepared. After preparation of DPR, sanctioning of project requires consultation with various stake-holders including State Governments and necessary approvals viz. appraisal of NITI Aayog, Ministry of Finance etc. As sanctioning of projects is a continuous and dynamic process, exact timelines cannot be fixed. …6/--:6:- Budget allocation for Infrastructure projects and safety works, falling fully/partly in the State of Punjab is as under: Period Outlay 2009-14 ₹225 crore/year 2025-26 ₹ 5,421 Cr. (More than 24 times) As on 01.04.2025, 09 projects (04 New Line and 05 Doubling) of total length 714 Km, costing Rs.21,926 crore, falling fully/partly in the State of Punjab are sanctioned, out of which 115 Km length has been commissioned and an expenditure of Rs.8,079 crore has been incurred upto March’ 2025. The summary is as under:- Category No. of Total Length Expenditure upto March project Length Commission 2025 s ed (Rs.in Crore) New Line 04 252 Km 64 Km 7,359 Doubling 05 462 Km 51 Km 720 /multitracking Total 09 714 Km 115 Km 8,079 In last three years i.e. 2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25 and current financial year 2025-26, 22 surveys (09 New Line, 12 Doubling and 01 Gauge Conversion) covering a total length of 2,101 Km have been taken up falling partly/fully in the State of Punjab. Station redevelopment in Punjab Ministry of Railways has launched Amrit Bharat Station Scheme for redevelopment of stations with a long-term approach. The scheme involves preparation of master plans and their implementation in phases to improve the stations. The master planning includes:  Improvement of access to station and circulating areas  Integration of station with both sides of city …7/--:7:-  Improvement of station building  Improvement of waiting halls, toilets, sitting arrangement, water booths  Provision of wider foot over bridge/air concourse commensurate with passenger traffic  Provision of lift/escalators/ramp  Improvement /Provision of platform surface and cover over platforms  Provision of kiosks for local products through schemes like ‘One Station One Product’  Parking areas, Multimodal integration  Amenities for Divyangjans  Better passenger information systems  Provision of executive lounges, nominated spaces for business meetings, landscaping, etc. keeping in view the necessity at each station. The scheme also envisages sustainable and environment friendly solutions, provision of ballastless tracks etc. as per necessity, phasing and feasibility and creation of city centre at the station in the long term. So far, 1337 stations have been identified for development under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme, out of which 30 stations are located in Punjab. The name of stations identified for development under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme in Punjab are as following: State No. of Name of Stations Stations Punjab 30 Abohar, Amritsar, Anandpur Sahib, Beas, Bhatinda Junction, Dhandari Kalan, Dhuri, Fazilka, Firozpur Cantt, Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar Cantt Junction, Jalandhar City Junction, Kapurthala, Kot Kapura Junction, Ludhiana Junction, Malerkotla, Mansa, Moga, Muktsar, Nangal Dam, Pathankot Cantt., Pathankot Junction, Patiala, Phagwara Junction, Phillaur Junction, Rup Nagar, Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar Mohali, Sangrur, Sirhind …8/--:8:- Development works at railway stations under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme in Punjab have been taken up at a good pace. Till now, works of 03 stations (Anandpur Sahib, Muktsar, Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar Mohali) in Punjab have been completed under this scheme. The works at other stations have also been taken up at good pace and progress of some of the stations is as given below:  Gurdaspur station: The works of improvement of station building, porch, platform shelter, waiting room, toilet, circulating area, parking and lighting on main entry have been completed. The works of entry/exist gate on main entry, new platform no. 2, booking cum waiting hall, circulating area, parking and entry/exist gate on second entry and 12 m Foot Over Bridge have been taken up.  Fazilka station: The works of improvement of station building, porch, platform shelter, platform surfacing, toilet, circulating area, parking, entry/exit gates, signage and lighting on main entry have been completed. The work of 6 m Foot Over Bridge has been taken up.  Phagwara station: The works of improvement of station building, porch, platform shelter, platform surfacing, waiting rooms, toilet, circulating area, parking, executive lounge, entry/exit gate, signage, lighting on main entry, new booking cum waiting hall, circulating area and approach road on second entry have been completed. The works of lift, escalator and 12 m Foot Over Bridge have been taken up.  Phillaur station: The works of improvement of station building, porch, platform shelter, platform surfacing, toilet, circulating area, parking, entry/exit gates, signage and lighting have been completed. The work of 12 m Foot Over Bridge have been taken up.  Kapurthala station: The works of improvement of station building, porch, platform shelter, platform surfacing, waiting room, toilet, circulating area, parking, entry/exit gates, signage, lighting on main entry side, new booking cum waiting hall, parking and circulating area on second entry have been completed. The work of 12 m Foot Over Bridge has been taken up. …9/--:9:- Further, development / redevelopment / upgradation / modernisation of stations on Indian Railways including provision for waiting hall and drinking water facilities is a continuous and ongoing process and works in this regard are undertaken as per requirement, subject to inter-se priority and availability of funds. Development / redevelopment / upgradation / modernisation of a station is carried out based on category of station/condition/traffic handled etc. Upgradation / development / redevelopment of Railway Stations is complex in nature involving safety of passengers & trains and requires various statutory clearances such as fire clearance, heritage, tree cutting, airport clearance etc. The progress also gets affected due to brown field related challenges such as shifting of utilities (involving water/sewage lines, optical fibre cables, gas pipe lines, power/signal cables, etc.), infringements, operation of trains without hindering passenger movement, speed restrictions due to works carried out in close proximity of tracks and high voltage power lines, etc. and these factors affect the completion time. Development / Upgradation / Modernisation of stations including under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme is generally funded under Plan Head-53 ‘Customer Amenities’. The details of allocation and expenditure under Plan Head-53 are maintained Zonal Railway-wise and not work-wise, or station wise or state-wise. Punjab is covered under the jurisdiction of two railway zones, namely Northern Railway and North Western Railway. For the last four years and the current year, ₹ 8,501 crore has been allocated while an expenditure of ₹ 7,131 crore has been incurred during the last four years and current year (up to December, 2025). *****