May 18, 2007 - India will spend about Rs 3,000 crores to construct a rail link with Burma to join the Trans-Asian railway network which will connect countries across Asia.
Indian Minister of State for Railways R Velu informed the lower house of parliament on Thursday that the missing link in India is from Jiribam in northeast India state of Manipur to Tamu in Burma.
"The construction of this missing link, as per the feasibility study conducted by the Ministry of External Affairs through RITES Ltd, is estimated to cost Rs 2,941 crore," Velu said.
Velu added that on this stretch, the Railway Ministry has sanctioned construction of a 97 kilomtere new rail link between Jiribam and Tupul near Imphal at a cost of Rs 727.5 crore.
The Indian government has approved the signing and ratification of the inter-governmental agreement on Trans-Asian Railway that was negotiated under the aegis of UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) and was opened for signature during the ministerial conference on transport at Busan, South Korea, in November 2006.
The agreement defines and lists the railway lines of international importance, including the missing links, and lays down the guiding principles relating to technical characteristics of transport.
The 81,000 kilometre network stretches from Turkey and Iran in the west to Russia, China and South Korea in the north, Kazakstan and Uzbekistan in central Asia, and Vietnam and Thailand in South East Asia.
Velu, however, said, "The agreement does not estimate the total investment required on the network."
Indian Minister of State for Railways R Velu informed the lower house of parliament on Thursday that the missing link in India is from Jiribam in northeast India state of Manipur to Tamu in Burma.
"The construction of this missing link, as per the feasibility study conducted by the Ministry of External Affairs through RITES Ltd, is estimated to cost Rs 2,941 crore," Velu said.
Velu added that on this stretch, the Railway Ministry has sanctioned construction of a 97 kilomtere new rail link between Jiribam and Tupul near Imphal at a cost of Rs 727.5 crore.
The Indian government has approved the signing and ratification of the inter-governmental agreement on Trans-Asian Railway that was negotiated under the aegis of UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) and was opened for signature during the ministerial conference on transport at Busan, South Korea, in November 2006.
The agreement defines and lists the railway lines of international importance, including the missing links, and lays down the guiding principles relating to technical characteristics of transport.
The 81,000 kilometre network stretches from Turkey and Iran in the west to Russia, China and South Korea in the north, Kazakstan and Uzbekistan in central Asia, and Vietnam and Thailand in South East Asia.
Velu, however, said, "The agreement does not estimate the total investment required on the network."
