Executive Summary:
This document summarizes the Indian Railway Ministry's response to questions regarding railway zones, density, and development, particularly in Karnataka. It outlines the current railway infrastructure, ongoing projects, and challenges like land acquisition, with data up to March 2025 and budget allocations including the FY 2025-2026. The document details efforts to enhance railway capacity and connectivity across the country.
Key Points / Main Content:
Railway Zones and Network:
- India has 17 operational railway zones, including Metro Railway, Kolkata. The foundation stone for the South Coast Railway has also been laid.
- Total railway route kilometerage is 69,181 km across all zones.
- Railway density is influenced by population density, terrain, and geographical features.
Capacity Enhancement and Projects:
- Focus on network capacity enhancement, bottleneck removal, increasing freight train speed, and reducing transit time and cost.
- Several capacity augmentation survey works have been sanctioned, including multi-tracking, rail flyovers, and yard remodeling.
- Project sanctioning is based on remunerativeness, traffic projections, connectivity, and various socio-economic considerations, not solely on state/district boundaries.
Project Sanctions and Surveys:
- From FY 2022-23 to the current FY, 892 surveys, 267 new line, 11 gauge conversion and 614 doubling projects totaling 61,462 km have been sanctioned across Indian Railways, including Karnataka.
- 237 projects (40 New Line, 17 Gauge Conversion and 180 Doubling) of total length 9,703 Km, costing approximately ₹1,90,333 Crore have been sanctioned across Indian Railways including Karnataka.
Karnataka Railway Projects:
- Railway infrastructure projects in Karnataka fall under South Western Railway (SWR), Central Railway (CR), Southern Railway (SR), and South Central Railway (SCR) zones.
- As of 01.04.2025, 25 projects (15 new lines, 10 doubling) of 3,264 km length, costing ₹42,517 crore, are sanctioned, with 1,394 km commissioned and ₹21,310 crore spent until March 2025.
- Budget allocation for infrastructure and safety works in Karnataka for 2025-26 is ₹7,564 crore, over 9 times the 2009-14 yearly average.
Project Completion and Delays:
- Project completion depends on land acquisition, forest clearances, utility shifting, statutory clearances, and other factors.
- Many projects in Karnataka face delays due to slow land acquisition.
- Details of delayed projects and land acquisition status are provided.
Impact Analysis:
Ministry of Railways:
Impact: Responsible for planning, sanctioning, and executing railway projects.
Action Required: Continue to allocate funds, address project delays due to land acquisition and coordinate with state governments for clearances.
State Government of Karnataka:
Impact: Vital for facilitating land acquisition and providing necessary clearances.
Action Required: Expedite land acquisition processes and provide necessary support for project implementation.
General Public:
Impact: Benefits from enhanced railway infrastructure and connectivity.
Action Required: No direct action required but can benefit from improved transportation facilities.
Railway Zones (SWR, CR, SR, SCR):
Impact: Responsible for executing projects within their respective jurisdictions.
Action Required: Implement sanctioned projects, coordinate with relevant authorities, and monitor project progress.
Key Entities Referenced
Ministry of Railways: The government ministry responsible for railways in India.
Ashwini Vaishnaw: The Minister of Railways, Information Broadcasting and Electronics Information Technology.
Karnataka: A state in South India where railway density enhancement is a focus of government schemes.
South Western Railway: A railway zone of Indian Railways that covers projects falling fully/partly in the State of Karnataka.
Central Railway: A railway zone of Indian Railways that covers projects falling fully/partly in the State of Karnataka.
Southern Railway: A railway zone of Indian Railways that covers projects falling fully/partly in the State of Karnataka.
South Central Railway: A railway zone of Indian Railways that covers projects falling fully/partly in the State of Karnataka.
Metro Railway, Kolkata: One of the 17 operational railway zones in the country.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1834
TO BE ANSWERED ON 30.07.2025
RAILWAY ZONES IN THE COUNTRY
1834. SHRI G KUMAR NAIK:
Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:
(a) the details of the total number of railway zones in the
country and the railway density in each zone, State/Union
Territory-wise;
(b) the railway density in the State of Karnataka, district-
wise;
(c) whether the Government has a policy that defines the
minimum railway density required to adequately meet
public transportation needs and support economic growth;
(d) if so, the details thereof;
(e) whether the existing railway density is sufficient to meet
the needs of the people, if so, the details thereof; and
(f) the details of schemes or initiatives proposed by the
Government to enhance railway density in Karnataka ?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND
ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
(SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)
(a) to (f) :There are 17 Railway Zones operational (including Metro
Railway, Kolkata) in the country. Further, foundation stone of South
Coast Railway has also been laid recently.
Page 1 of 6The details of Zonal Railway wise route km is given below : -
S.No. Railway Route Km.
1 Central 4275
2 Eastern 2841
3 East Central 4377
4 East Coast 3071
5 Northern 7406
6 North Central 3522
7 North Eastern 3492
8 Northeast 4348
9 North Western 5712
10 Southern 5092
11 South Central 6610
12 South Eastern 2749
13 South East 2541
14 South Western 3692
15 Western 6284
16 West Central 3124
17 Metro, Kolkata 45
Total 69,181
Railway network in any area depends upon the population density of
that area, terrain, geographical features, etc. Therefore, Railway
density varies from region to region.
The rail infrastructure augmentation plan inter-alia focuses on the
network capacity enhancement, removal of bottlenecks, increasing
average speed of freight trains, reduction in cargo transit time and
cost. Further, to improve capacity of existing network, several
capacity enhancement/augmentation survey/works have been
sanctioned by railways. These works include multi tracking, rail
flyovers, by pass lines, yard remodelling works etc.
Railway projects are surveyed/ sanctioned/executed Zonal Railway
wise and not State-wise/UT wise/District wise as the Railway
projects may span across State/UT/District boundaries. Railway
Page 2 of 6projects are sanctioned on the basis of remunerativeness, traffic
projections, last mile connectivity, missing links and alternate
routes including connectivity between major cities and rural areas,
augmentation of congested/saturated lines, demands raised by
State Governments, Central Ministries, Members of Parliament,
other public representatives, Railway’s own operational
requirement, socio-economic considerations etc. depending upon
throwforward of ongoing projects and overall availability of funds.
During last 3 years (2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25) and current FY, 892
no. Surveys (267 New line, 11 Gauge Conversion and 614 Doubling)
of total length 61,462 Km have been sanctioned across Indian
Railways including Karnataka.
During last three years i.e. FY 2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25 and the
current FY, 237 projects (40 New Line, 17 Gauge Conversion and
180 Doubling) of total length 9,703 Km, costing approx. ₹1,90,333
Crore have been sanctioned across Indian Railways including
Karnataka.
Railway infrastructure projects falling fully/partly in the State of
Karnataka are covered under South Western Railway (SWR), Central
Railway (CR), Southern Railway (SR) and South Central Railway
(SCR) zones of Indian Railways. Zonal Railway wise details of
Railway projects are made available in public domain on Indian
Railway’s website.
As on 01.04.2025, 25 projects (15 new lines, 10 Doubling) of 3,264
km length, costing ₹42,517 crore falling fully/partly in Karnataka are
sanctioned, out of which 1,394 Km length has been commissioned
and an expenditure of ₹21,310 Crore has been incurred upto
March’ 2025.
Page 3 of 6The summary is as under:-
Category No of Total Length Exp
sanctioned Length Commissioned upto
Projects (in km) Upto Mar'25 Mar'25
(Km) (₹ in cr.)
New Line 15 2,034 421 8,794
Doubling/
10 1,230 973 12,516
Multitracking
Total 25 3,264 1,394 21,310
Budget allocation for infrastructure projects and safety works,
falling fully/partly in the State of Karnataka is as under:
Period Outlay
2009-14 ₹835 crore/year
2025-26 ₹7,564 crore (more than 9 times)
The details of commissioning/laying of new track falling fully/partly
in the State of Karnataka during 2009-14 and 2014-25 is as under:
Period Total Track Average Track
Commissioned Commissioned
2009-14 565 Km 113 km/year
2014-25 1,671 Km. 152 km/year
Details of some of the recently completed projects falling fully/partly
in Karnataka are as under :
S. No Project Cost
(₹in Crores)
1 Kottur-Harihar New Line (65 km) 468
2 Hassan-Bangalore New Line (167 1290
3 Bidar-Gulbarga New Line (110 km) 1543
4 Shivani-Hosadurga Road Doubling 50
Page 4 of 65 Shivani-Birur Doubling (29 km) 143
6 Hosadurga-Chikjajur Doubling (29 260
7 Ramanagram-Mysore patch Doubling 998
8 Yelahanka – Chennasadra Doubling 108
9 Yeshwantpur-Yelahanka Doubling 95
10 Netrawati-Mangalore Central 28
11 Kankanadi-Panambur Doubling (19 350
12 Arsikere-Tumkur Doubling (96 km) 758
13 Yelahanka-Penukonda Doubling (123 1104
14 Daund-Gulbarga Doubling (225 km) 3182
15 Hubli-Chikjajur Doubling (190 km) 1850
Some of the projects falling fully/partly in Karnataka which have
been taken up are as under:
Cost
S No. Project
(₹ in Crores)
1 Hospet-Hubli-Londa-Vasco-de-Gama 4153
Doubling (312 Km)
2 Toranagallu-Ranjithpura Doubling (23 Km) 147
3 Hotgi-Gadag Doubling (284 Km) 2459
4 Ginigera - Raichur New line (165 Km) 3401
5 Gadag - Wadi New line (257 Km) 2842
6 Bagalkot - Kudachi New line (142 Km) 1649
7 Tumkur - Rayadurga New line (207 Km) 2496
8 Tumkur - Davangere New line (182 Km) 2142
9 Chikmagalur - Belur New line (22 Km) 290
10 Kadur - Chikmagalur New line (46 Km) 535
11 Baiyyapanahalli - Hosur Doubling (48 Km) 336
12 Yeshwanthpur - Channasandra Doubling 314
(22 Km)
Despite the fact that Government of India has been progressively
allocating record funds for railway projects, many projects in
Karnataka are still delayed due to slow pace of land acquisition.
Page 5 of 6Some of the projects delayed due to land acquisition are given as
under:-
Total Land Balance
Land acquired Land to
S
Project required (in Ha) be
No.
(in Ha) acquired
(in Ha)
1 Shimoga - Rannebennur New line
559 226 333
(96 Km)
2 Belgaum - Dharwad New line (73
531 0 531
Km)
3 Shimoga - Harihar New line (79
488 0 488
Km)
4 Whitefield-Kolar New line (53 km) 337 0 337
5 Hassan-Belur New Line(27 km) 206 0 206
Summary of the status of land acquisition in Karnataka is as under:
Total Land required for Projects in 8969 Ha
Karnataka
Land Acquired 5657 Ha (63%)
Balance Land to be acquired 3312Ha (37%)
Completion of Railway project/s depends on various factors like
quick land acquisition by State Government, forest clearance by
officials of forest department, shifting of infringing utilities,
statutory clearances from various authorities, geological and
topographical conditions of area, law and order situation in the area
of project/s site, number of working months in a year for particular
project site etc. All these factors affect the completion time and
cost of the project/s.
*****
Page 6 of 6