The Gandhidham–Palanpur section belongs to the Western Railway of Kutch district of Gujarat state.

History

The railway was financed by the Maharao Khengarji Bawa of

Cutch State Cutch State, also spelled Kutch or Kachchh and also historically known as the Kingdom of Kutch, was a kingdom in the Kutch region from 1147 to 1819 and a princely state under British rule from 1819 to 1947. Its territories covered the present ...

. 15 miles from Anjar to Kandla was opened in 1930. Another line was construction started from Kandla to Disa in 1950 with a cost of 5.5 crores. Gandhidham–Disa section was opened in 1952 by the then-president

Rajendra Prasad Rajendra Prasad (3 December 1884 – 28 February 1963) was an Indian politician, lawyer, journalist and scholar who served as the first president of India from 1950 to 1962. He joined the Indian National Congress during the Indian independen ...

. The gauge conversion of this line was completed on 24 March 2006. The Gauge conversion of Gandhidham–Palanpur section was the first long-distance line conversion under SPV section.

Prominence

The 301 km Gandhidham–Palanpur section connects the Gulf of Kutch with the Delhi–Ahmedabad mainline. This line is providing connectivity for North India with Kandla and GAPL's Mundra ports. The distance between Delhi and the Kutch region has been reduced by 114 km.

Freight service

It is a dedicated freight corridor for Western Gujarat. The Kandla and Mundra ports, local salt industry,

Indian Oil Corporation Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL or IOC), trading as IndianOil, is an Indian multinational oil and gas company under the ownership of the Government of India and administrative control of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. It is ...

's depot, and Iffco's fertilizer plant at Kandla is benefited from this line for freight services. The first Python goods train of Western Railway plied on this section on 12 April 2011.

Doubling

The doubling and electrification of Gandhidham–Palanpur section is likely to be completed in the next five years in 2025 in the 13th five-year plan period.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gandhidham - Palanpur section 5 ft 6 in gauge railways in India Railway lines in Gujarat Transport in Kutch district Banaskantha district * 1952 establishments in Bombay State Transport in Gandhidham Railway lines opened in 1952