Bhubaneswar, Jul 29 (IANS): Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday requested Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal to accord necessary approval to start passenger traffic on the new Haridaspur-Paradip railway line.

In a letter, the Chief Minister requested to accord necessary approvals and certifications so that a passenger train can be flagged off on this new line at the earliest, preferably in August.

This railway project is being executed through a special purpose vehicle (SPV) company called Haridaspur Paradip Railway Company Limited (HPRCL), in which the Odisha government, the Ministry of Shipping and the Indian Railways have similar share in equity.

The project has taken extremely long time for commissioning but with continuous monitoring, it has finally come to the commissioning stage, said Patnaik.

"The 82 km new line is connecting the Kendrapada district to Railway map for the first time. As connecting all unconnected districts through Railways is a stated policy, my Government invested in equity as sought by Railways, to make this project economically viable," informed the Chief Minister.

He said while most work for commissioning of the line is now completed, running of passenger traffic over this new line, to fulfill the aspirations of the people of Kendrapada district, is required to be finalized now.

The SPV company, as per requirement, has already recommended to the Ministry of Railways for approval for running passenger trains.

He said it is important to understand the connectivity needs of people and especially for people of Kendrapada district, who have not seen a passenger train as yet.

"This is the reason why Odisha Government has waived off all Stamp Duty, Registration Fee and also Premium on land, along with direct monetary equity support to this Railway project," he added.