A bag full of goodies for Chandigarh

Also,Chandigarh will be on the map of the special ‘Bharat Tirth’ train — via Madurai-Varanasi-Gaya-Patna Sahib-Allahabad-Haridwar-Chandigarh-Kurukshetra-Amritsar-Delhi-Madurai — announced in the budget.

The city is also expected to be on the route of the long-distance tri-weekly express train from Una to Haridwar.

The budget also included six high speed corridors of 250 to 300 kilometre per hour — Delhi-Chandigarh-Amritsar is one of them.

Further,Chandigarh and Ambala Cantonment railway stations will have a secondary-level general speciality hospital and a tertiary-level multi-speciality hospital with out-patient departments (OPD) and diagnostic centre.

“At this point,it is difficult to say anything about the date and schedule of the Duronto Express. But as it has been announced,it would be a day train. Other formalities will be decided after consultations with the headquarter,” Ambala Division Railway Manager Y P Singh said.

“The announcement of Duronto,which is cheaper and faster compared to even Rajdhani trains,has been welcomed by people,” Joginder Singh Bhogal,member of the Zonal Railway Users Consultative Committee,Northern Railways,said.

The budget had something for ex-servicemen,who have a sizeable population in Chandigarh,as well. Now,they can be inducted into the Railway Protection Force.

“It will be better for those retiring early. As they are already trained,they would easily meet the service requirements,” Lt Colonel Angad Singh(Retd),general secretary of the Indian Ex-Servicemen League,Punjab and Chandigarh,said.

Also,the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana,a health insurance scheme,has been extended to all licensed porters,vendors and hawkers at railway stations.

Proposals for the region

* Chandigarh railway station to have a secondary-level general speciality hospital and a tertiary-level multi-speciality hospital with OPD and diagnostic centre.

* Traffic surveys of Chandigarh-Dehradun rail link via Jagadhri,Yamunanagar-Patiala link,Jagadhri-Paonta Sahib link and Nalagarh-Baddi link to be undertaken.

* Ambala Cantonment railway station to become a world-class railway station.

* Water bottling plant to come up at Ambala Cantonment.