For smooth coordination between the state government and central government on railways related projects, Union Minister of State for Railways Darshana Jardosh Monday held a high-level meeting in Gandhinagar under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, said an official release. The Union minister thanked Patel for the fact that 98.7% land acquisition work in Gujarat for the Ahmedabad-Mumbai High Speed Rail has been completed with active cooperation of the Revenue department. As per the release, considering that Gujarat gets the benefit of both central and state governments, Jardosh expressed expectation that important railway projects in the state will be completed on time. “Chief Minister Shri Bhupendra Patel told the officials present in the meeting that such an atmosphere should be created where the pending issues related to railways between the state and the Centre could be resolved through mutual understanding and discussion,” the release said. “In this regard, he (the CM) directed the Chief Secretary, Pankaj Kumar to set up an institutionalised system for various issues including dedicated freight corridor, state-central partnership in railway overbridge and to carry out a review meeting after one month to resolve the questions that come up,” it added. The meeting was attended by the concerned ministers and top officials of Gujarat's revenue department, urban development department and roads and buildings department. Officials of the Union Ministry of Railways, Western Railway High Speed Rail Corporation and Dedicated Freight Corridor were also present in the meeting.
