Punjab has been ignored,again: CM

He said the hopes of industrialists and agriculturists in the state have been dashed after the budget,he said.

The Chief Minister said in the last 63 years,no Congress government had allotted even an inch of additional railway line to Punjab. Even the progress of the Chandigarh-Ludhiana link sanctioned by the I K Gujral-government was not mentioned in the budget despite the state government’s repeated reminders to the Centre for early completion of this project,Badal said.

He said even the common man of the state had been eluded as the budget did not have any specific provision for new trains in Punjab.

The extension of the already sanctioned Kolkata-Ludhiana Eastern Rail Freight Corridor to Amritsar was also not provided in the budget. The state’s demand for another freight dedicated corridor from Mumbai-Delhi-Amritsar via Ludhiana was also ignored.

Mamata serving interests of WB alone,alleges Sukhbir

PATIALA: Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal criticised Union Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee for “only serving the interests of her home state West Bengal”. Sukhbir said no new trains for Punjab were being introduced and various railway lines in the border state were not being upgraded,despite several requests made to the minister. “It is unfortunate that for the over a decade all rail ministers are from Bihar or West Bengal,and due to that,many new trains start from there and serve the interest of those states alone,” he added.

Sidhu: State proposals thrown in dustbin

AMRITSAR: BJP MP Navjot Singh Sidhu on Wednesday termed the Railway Budget as “West Bengal Rail Budget”. “Punjab’s proposals like extending the freight corridor to Amritsar,completion of Makhu-Ferozepur link,linking of Chandigarh with Amritsar,have been thrown into the dustbin,” remarked Sidhu,adding that a 25-kilometre rail link between Makhu and Ferozepur would have reduced the distance between Mumbai and Amritsar by 250 kilometres.