A number of new railway projects have been sanctioned for Odisha in the Union budget 2019-20

The Union budget 2019-20 has allocated Rs 5993 crore for the railway sector of Odisha, registering an increase of Rs 741 crore from the last year's outlay, a railway official said on Wednesday.

It is the highest ever railway allotment for Odisha. The interim budget had provided Rs Rs 5940 crore and last year's budget have given Rs 5252 crore to the state, an East Coast Railway (ECoR) spokesperson said.

The fund was allocated for various projects, passenger amenities, track renewal & repairs, road over bridges, road under bridges, electrification and staff amenities, he said.

A number of new railway projects have been sanctioned for Odisha in the Union budget 2019-20, he said adding that passenger amenities have received an allocation of Rs 180 crore.

A sum of Rs 1,400 crore has been allocated for several new railway lines, the spokesperson said adding that Rs 250 crore has been provided for 98.7 km Angul-Sukinda Road, while Rs 400 crore is earmarked for 82 km Haridaspur-Paradeep line.

Funds were also given for the Khurda Road-Bolangir line, Talcher-Bimlagarh line, Jeypore-Malkangiri line and Jeypore-Nabarangpur line, he said.

Grants have also been announced for doubling of over a dozen lines - Sambalpur-Talcher, Koraput-Singapur Road and Budapank-Salegaon, the spokesperson said.