The formation of the Rayagada Railway Division will vastly help the area in terms of better connectivity and economic growth.
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Ashwini Vaishnav:
Source: wikibio.in
Ashwini Vaishnaw was born on July 18, 1970, is an Indian politician, former IAS officer, and businessman. He is currently serving as the 39th Minister of Railways, the 35th Minister of Information and Broadcasting, and the 2nd Minister of Electronics and Information Technology since 2024.
The positions were taken on by him earlier from 2024. He has also been a Member of the Rajya Sabha from Odisha for the Bharatiya Janata Party since 2019.
Ashwini Vaishnaw belongs to Jeewand Kallan village in Rajasthan’s Pali district. His family later migrated to Jodhpur, Rajasthan.
He joined the Indian Administrative Service in 1994 in the Odisha cadre. He served in huge parts of Odisha, and he was the District Collector of Balasore and Cuttack districts. During the super cyclone in 1999, he gathered real-time data regarding the timing and location of the cyclone that helped the Government of Odisha take safety measures for the people.
Ashwini Vaishnaw continued in Odisha till 2003, when he became the deputy secretary in the office of then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. During his stint in the PMO, he played a key role in formulating the public-private partnership framework for infrastructure projects. He was private secretary to Vajpayee after the BJP-led NDA lost the 2004 election.
In 2006, he was made Deputy Chairman of Mormugao Port Trust and continued for a period of two years.
In 2012, two companies, Three Tee Auto Logistics Private Limited and Vee Gee Auto Components Private Limited, with their main operations in Gujarat and involved in the manufacture of auto components, were founded by him.
Vaishnaw is presently a Member of Indian Parliament in the Rajya Sabha, representing the state of Odisha. He became a Member of the Rajya Sabha unopposed and was supported by some members from the Biju Janata Dal in Odisha.
Vaishnaw has been appointed to the Committee on Subordinate Legislation and Petitions and the Committee on Science and Technology, Environment and Forests.
During the reshuffle of the 22nd cabinet, he was appointed as Minister of Railways, Minister of Electronics and Information Technology, and Minister of Communications in June 2024. As the Union Telecom Minister, he launched the Sanchar Saathi portal in May 2023.
Rayagada Railway Division:
Source: Youtube
Rayagada railway station, with the Station Code RGDA, falls within the Odisha district of Rayagada, India. It comes under the three railway divisions of East Coast Railway and remains one of the major stations on the Southern Odisha lineage. The arrival and departure of 58 trains get managed from the station with direct connectivity to more than 15 states and all metro cities of the country.
The railway station at Rayagada, situated in the middle of the city, has the longest platform in Odisha (Platform No. 3, which is 910 metres long), hence making it the 6th longest in India and the 7th longest in the world. Rayagada railway station has a double-bedded non-AC retiring room and a six-bedded dormitory for passengers.
The Vizianagaram–Parvatipuram line, 79 km (49 mi) long, was opened between 1908 and 1909, and an extension to Salur in 1913. The Parvathipuram–Raipur line was finally completed in December 1931.
The Koraput–Rayagada Rail Link Project was finalized on 31 December 1998.
₹70 crore for refurbishing Rayagada Railway Division:
It has been announced that the Railway Ministry has sanctioned Rs 70 crore to the Rayagada Railway Division in Odisha, which would be under the East Coast Railway Zone, officials announced on Friday.
The Rayagada Railway Division would bring immense benefits to the area with better connectivity and economic growth, officials added.
Nabarangpur MP Balabhadra Majhi has been informed that allocation to the State would be made known in a meeting with Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw in New Delhi on Wednesday.
Majhi thanked the Railway Minister for taking up the long-pending Rayagada Railway Division issue and said, “I appreciate the Railway Minister’s efforts on this public-centric matter. After thorough discussion, I am happy to inform you that most of the necessary procedures for establishment of the Rayagada Division are at the verge of completion. The work will start in a short period after finalising tenders.”
Now, the three divisions under the ECoR zone are Khurda Road, Sambalpur, and Waltair. Rayagada division will be a new division carved out from Waltair division.
Link to the official X account of the Ministry of Railways:
https://x.com/RailMinIndia?t=nsH598PY9tzbfg5sg63TZQ&s=08
