Urging the Union government to fulfill the demand for establishing a Railway Division in Kalaburagi pending for the last four decades, members of the Kalyana Karnataka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KKCCI) will stage a rail roko at Kalaburagi Railway Station on Friday.
The protesters will stop the Shatabdi Express train that runs between Pune and Secunderabad Junction via Kalaburagi and register their protest against what they say the Union government’s negligence towards the region.
KKCCI president Shashikant Patil, its honorary president Lingaraj Appa and KKCCI former president Umakant Niggudagi, jointly addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, said that the KKCCI will intensify its agitation if the Central government fails to incorporate the demand in the upcoming Union Budget.
“We will continue to agitate until the Railway Division is established in Kalaburagi. If the government turns a blind eye and a deaf ear to this demand and continues to neglect the development of Kalyana Karnataka region, a demand for statehood for Kalyana Karnataka will become inevitable in the coming 10 years,” Mr. Patil and Mr. Niggudagi said.
After the Justice H.C. Sareen Committee recommended the establishment of Railway Division in 1984, the proposal was mooted in 2002 under NDA government and both Kalaburagi and Jammu railway divisions were announced at a time in 2014.
In fact, a detailed project report was approved and 43 acres of land required for the project was allocated to the Railways. The Railway Board approved the jurisdiction for Kalaburagi Railway Division with an outlay of 1,070 route km line. But the Union government dropped the proposal for establishing Kalaburagi Railway Division and planned to operate only the Jammu Railway Division, Mr. Patil added.
Accusing the Railways Ministry of neglecting Kalyana Karnataka railway issues, including merging Yadgir, Raichur, Kalaburagi and Bidar district lines under one Railway Division in Kalaburagi, Mr. Niggudagi expressed reservation against the formation of the South Coastal Railway Zone of the Railways with its headquarters in Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh.
At present, the seven districts of Kalyana Karnataka region are split under three zones, South Central Railway, Central Railway and South Western Railway, and five railway divisions, Secunderabad, Guntakal, Solapur, Hubballi and Hyderabad.
Mr. Niggudagi stated that though Kalaburagi has better income, the Central Railway is diverting all revenues to Solapur division. A dedicated railway division in Kalaburagi will act as a catalyst for economic growth of the region.
Mr. Niggudagi said that influential Ministers from other regions of Karnataka and Maharashtra who are in the Union cabinet are hindering the growth of Kalaburagi since it generates more revenue than the Solapur Division of Central Railway.
Replying to a question on the possibilities of the establishment of a railway division, which has been pending for the last four decades, Mr. Niggudagi said that in a democratic society, the voice of the common people is crucial in shaping public policy, influencing decision-making and holding those in power accountable.
“In the coming days, the KKCCI will take a delegation to meet the Railway Minister to press for the establishment of a railway division in Kalaburagi and if required, the KKCCI will shift its agitation from Kalaburagi to Jantar Mantar in Delhi,” he added.
Mr. Lingaraj Appa appealed to several associations of Kirana Bazaar, Cloth Bazaar, Safar Bazaar, Dal Mills and Traders and all commercial establishments to extend their support by joining the rail roko at Kalaburagi Railway Station on Friday.
