He said 106 km Khurda Road-Daspalla and 120 km Purunakatak-Balangir parts of the line have been commissioned while work for the 75 km Daspalla-Purunakatak stretch has been taken up. The railway line contains seven tunnels totalling 11.96 km, of which six tunnels covering 7.7 km have been completed and work on one tunnel continues. All five bridges on the route have been completed and work on five station buildings is under progress.
The minister added that construction of an 85 km third and fourth line between Salegaon and Budhapank has also been taken up as another major project in the state. The 23 km Salegaon-Rajathgarh section has been commissioned while land acquisition and forest land diversion for the 20 km Rajathgarh to Dhenkanal stretch have been initiated. The 34 km stretch from Dhenkanal to Meramundali has already been commissioned while land acquisition and forest land diversion for the eight km Meramundali-Budhapank section is under way.
The progress report reflects staged commissioning and ongoing civil works aimed at improving connectivity and capacity in the region. The figures were provided in a written reply to a member of the Rajya Sabha, which emphasised completion of major civil structures as remaining work advances. No further timelines were specified in the reply.