BJP MP Medha Kulkarni demands high-speed rail connectivity from Pune to major cities

Students, traders and tourists are inconvenienced because there are no high-speed trains from Pune to Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and other major cities, Rajya Sabha MP Medha Kulkarni said.

The plan to provide direct rail connectivity between Nashik and Pune has been held up for long. (Express File)

BJP MP Medha Kulkarni has urged the Centre to provide high-speed rail connectivity between Pune and other cities in the country, with trains like Rajdhani, Tejas and Vande Bharat Express.

“I have raised the issue in Rajya Sabha,” she said, adding that students, traders and tourists are inconvenienced because there are no high-speed trains from Pune to Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and other important cities. Speaking in the Upper House on Monday, Kulkarni demanded that high-speed trains starting from other cities should have a halt in Pune.

“Pune city should be connected to other pilgrim cities in the country through Bharat Gaurav Yatra trains,” the MP said, while pointing out that there was also no direct rail connectivity to the pilgrim city of Nashik which is also an industrial hub, forcing citizens to travel via Mumbai. There is a need to connect Pune with Nashik through a direct rail service which will encourage business activities and religious tourism, Kulkarni stated.

The plan to provide direct rail connectivity between Nashik and Pune has been held up for long. A semi high-speed rail service was proposed at a cost of Rs 16,000 crore to cover the 235-km route in two hours, travelling through 24 stations. The project was meant to be implemented jointly by the state and Union governments but the land acquisition has been delayed and scientific institutes have also raised technical objections.

Click here to join Express Pune WhatsApp channel and get a curated list of our stories