___________

Following is an excerpt from a report in Telegraph.

The $250 million World Bank loan will go a long way for the development of roads, said state works minister A.U. Singhdeo. The government would share 20 per cent of the total cost of the World Bank-funded Orissa state road project, added the minister.

With the loan amount, 461km of roads would be upgraded to two-lane. A damaged high-level bridge over the Banshadahra near Gumuda would be renovated, too.

Out of the 461km of the road, construction of 204km would be taken up in the phase-I package, while the rest of 257km would developed in phase-II of the project.

The phase-I package would include Bhawanipatna-Khariar road (68km), Chandbali-Bhadrak-Anandpur road (95km) and Berhampur-Taptapani road (41km).

Taptapani-Raipanka road (68km), Raipanka-JK Pur road (83km) and Jagatpur-Chandbali road (106km) would come under the second package.

Besides the above six roads, feasibility reports and bid documents for widening of Sambalpur-Rourkela road (165km), Joda-Bambry road (18km) and Koira-Tensa-Lahunipara road (46 km) under public-private participation mode is under preparation.

The World Bank is also financing the cost of consultancy services, revealed a senior official of the state works department.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Pioneer.

Investment proposals worth Rs 1,825.61 crore were cleared by State-level Single Window Clearance Authority (SLSWCA) here on Saturday.

The SLSWCA meeting, chaired by Chief Secretary Ajit Kumar Tripathy, gave its nod to the Rs 900-crore investment project of Oceanic Shipyard Limited (OSL) along with two cold rolling mills with an investment of Rs 925.61 crore.

… IPICOL managing director Ashok Kumar Meena told the media that OSL, a subsidiary of Bengal Shipyard Limited (BSL), has proposed to set up an oil rig, offshore structure and a support vessels manufacturing and repairing unit at Dhamra in Bhadrak district with an investment of Rs 900 crore. BSL, a joint venture of Apeejay Shipping Limited and Bharati shipyard Limited, is setting up a shipyard at Dhamra with an investment of Rs 2,400 crore.

Meena said the company had asked for 950 acres of land at Dhamra to set up the facility in a period of 60 months in three phases from the date of allotment of land. The project would generate direct employment opportunity for 7,500 persons. As the net worth of the group is Rs 647 crore in 2006-07, there would be no problem of raising the funds for the greenfield project, added another official.

The proposal of the Bhuvee Profiles & Stainless Limited (BPSL) to set up a 0.790-mtpa hot rolled plates and coil rolling mill with an investment of Rs 492.66 crore at Kuranti in Dhenkanal district was cleared by the Authority, said Meena.

According to him, a sister concern of the BRG Group, BPSL would be the downstream project of the group. The company has asked for 90 acres of land, though the requirement for the project would be 45 to 50 acres, said an official.

Meena said the proposal of Rabirun Vinimay Private Limited (RVPL) to set up a 0.240-mtpa cold rolling mill complex at Kuranti with an investment of Rs 432.95 crore was also okayed.

Following is from http://rc.orissa.gov.in/index3.asp?linkid=30&sublinkid=593.

Shri Naveen Patnaik, Chief Minister, Orissa had a meeting with Shri K.C.Jena, Chairman, Railway Board today and emphasized the need for expansion and augmentation of railway infrastructure in the State of Orissa as it is on the threshold of a major industrial upsurge. This will necessitate laying of new rail links, construction of elaborate rail terminals and bulk cargo handling points. He pointed out that the railway route length in Orissa is well below the national average and also much less than the neighbouring States like Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Bihar.

The CM mentioned that there has been very little progress of Khurda Road-Bolangir railway line and the Ministry of Railways have allocated only Rs.32 crores during 2008-09 and stressed for increased allocation.

The CM has drawn the attention of the Chairman to the KBK districts which have a high percentage of tribal population and stressed the need for sanction of Jeypore-Malkanglri (117 Kms) line for which survey has already been completed. He further stated that advent of railways would lead to socio-economic development in that region.

He also informed that the Government of Orissa has entered into MOUs for setting up two alumina plants in the region and in this context, Lanjigarh Road-Junagarh new B.G. rail link assumes significance. He desired that the section between Lanjigarh and Bhawanipatna should be commissioned early.

He has also reiterated Government of Orissa’s interest for development of Gopalpur, Dhamra and Subarnarekha mouth (Kirtania) ports into all weather ports along its coast line and stressed that railway lines connecting Rupsa-Burhamara to Chakulia (50 kms), Nuapada-Gunupur B.G. Rail link to Theruvali (79 kms) and Banspani-Barbil for which preliminary surveys have been completed assume critical importance for movement of in bound and out bound traffic likely to be generated by the coastal ports, industries as well as mines in the hinterland

He underlined the need for expeditiously completing the residual work on Daitari-Banspani B.G.Rail Link and to introduce an intercity express between Bhubaneswar-Jamshedpur via Keonjhar. He also desired early commissioning of Cuttack-Barang doubling. The Chairman, Railway Board assured Hon�ble C.M. that Puri-Keonjhargarh Coaching Train services will be introduced before October, 2008.

Since the lack of adequate rail infrastructure has hindered the socio-economic growth of the State, he impressed upon the need to consider increased allocation of funds to ensure speedy execution of the sanctioned projects and also sanctioning of the new projects, surveys. He expressed happiness for identifying Bhubaneswar as one of the locations for construction of a world class railway station.

He also emphasized the need for introduction of new trains, extension and increase in frequency of mail/express trains, improved passenger amenities at stations etc to meet the aspirations of the people of Orissa and the developmental needs of a fast growing economy. He pointed out that although four new trains and one extension were announced in the Railway Budget of 2008-09, they have not yet been introduced and requested for early introduction of these trains.

The CM also desired early normalization of Balasore-Kharagpur section and restoration of normal coaching services as nineteen trains still stand cancelled because of the breach of railway track between Contai Road and Bakhrabad due to the recent floods.

The Chairman, Railway Board assured the Hon’ble C.M. to expedite all the above Projects of Railways in Orissa

The Chief minister’s requests were reasonable as it was made to the Railway Board chair who can only do things within the set parameters. The CM needs to go to the planning commission and the PM to make a broader request of complete connectivity to KBK+ and other adivasi districts within five years. The important parts he missed emphasizing are:

• Junagarh – Nabarangpur – Jeypore; Malkangiri – Bhadrachalam – Bhadrachalam Rd
• Talcher – Bimlagarh

Following is an excerpt from a report in the Statesman.

Vedanta Aluminium Ltd (VAL) offers the best rehabilitation package in the state, claimed company sources here recently. The company aims to reduce the impact of its activities on the environment, wherever feasible. The majority of the sites are certified by the international environmental management systems standard ISO 14001. This includes the requirement that environmental impacts are identified. There are ongoing programmes for improvement across key impact areas, they said.

Responding to the critics of its bauxite mining project at Kalahandi, Vedanta officials said that all 120 families that were displaced for the project have got pucca houses with round-the-clock electricity and water supply. Besides one youth from each displaced family has been trained and given a job in the refinery, adding that a total of 2,500 local people have found employment in the refinery project till date. “While about 2000 people had got direct employment at the refinery in Lanjigarh, over 2000 others were getting indirect income generating opportunities,” company sources said.

Vedanta has also started the ‘Sasya Silpa Abhijan’ an initiative of vegetable cultivation, run in collaboration with the Asian Institute of Sustainable Development to give a boost to agriculture in the area. “On an area of 550 acres of land, nearly 500 farmers are participating in the project as partners,” said a senior official. “Although we bear the expenses for irrigation through a diesel pump set by us, yet the training and support provided by Vedanta through this programme has helped us a lot,” said Mr Dinanath Pangi, a farmer.

Vedanta also offers various self-employment schemes for residents of the villages nearby and especially for the womenfolk. Women self-help-groups have been started under public-private partnership in collaboration with the district health department on the Swastha Parivar project. In a bid to widen its corporate social responsibility, the Vedanta group has also adopted 400 Anganwadi centres in Kalahandi district and will look after more than 40,000 children in some of the state’s most backward areas.

“Vedanta has signed an MoU with the state government and the Sterlite Foundation for the adoptions,” said Vedanta group spokesman Mr CV Krishnan. “As a part of the arrangement, every pre-school child aged between three and six years will be provided a cooked meal of 300 calories at noon. The company will also look after the health of the children through regular check ups and medicines,” he added.

He further said that the company is also undertaking the beautification of the Anganwadis by erecting green boundaries, whitewashing buildings and providing see-saws and slides for the children. Furthermore incentives are being provided to Anganwadi workers. While Anganwadi workers receive Rs 250 per month, each helper is given Rs 150 extra by the company. “The same exercise will also be replicated in Jharsuguda,” Mr Krishnan said. The total expenditure on child welfare activities in the two districts will be over Rs 15 crore, company officials revealed In order to ensure that everything goes as per plan, the process will be reviewed by a committee headed by the district collector, the local MLA and the chairman of panchayat samity, they said.

Mr Krishnan said that Vedanta further aims to improve the electricity network, construct roads and develop better educational and healthcare facilities.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Pragativadi.

Laying the foundation stone for the Integrated Sewerage System for Bhubaneswar city at a grand function on Tuesday, chief minister Naveen Patnaik said that all measures were taken by the state government to improve infrastructure of the city in an effort to provide basic amenities to people.

Speaking on the occasion, housing and urban development minister KV Singhdeo said that the detailed project report (DPR) of the project was presented to the ministry of urban development, Government of India, Japan Bank for International Cooperation and 12th Finance Commission of Government of India for funding.

Finally, after due approval by the H&UD Department, the project got the financial assistance from different sources, he said, adding, the sewerage system would be developed with the technical assistance from IIT, Roorkee at an estimated cost of Rs 754.23 crore.

… The sewerage system of Bhubaneswar envisages laying of 412 km underground gravity sewer for collection of sewage of each household and establishment throughout the city in uncovered area, replacement and renovation of all existing old sewers, construction of main, intermediate and lift pumping stations, construction of sewage treatment plants and construction of low cost sanitation units in the city area.

The new sewerage system has been planned by diving the city are into six sewerage districts that shall be provided with an independent sewerage network, pumping system, sewage treatment and disposal system.

The sewerage system has been designed for a projected city population of 22 lakh upto 2041.

The project area of 145 sq km includes all wards of Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (except wards beyond river Kuakhai) and fringe areas covered under city master plan.

The project will ensure proper treatment of generated sewage in the city area with provision of modern treatment technology like Standard Activates Sludge Process.

The project will provide good and effective sewerage services to the urban population and will reduce non-point sources of pollution. Overall sanitation condition of the city will be improved.

The project has been planned to be implemented by 2011.

The sewer laying work of three districts via sewerage district- I, II and III has been awarded to the East Coast Construction and Industries Ltd, Engineers and Contractors, Chennai through a transparent system.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Pragativadi.

The Orissa government on Tuesday said that 9 of the 13 Independent Power Producers (IPP) have begun working on respective projects while Sterlite Energy Private is expected to generate 600 MW power in two months time.

As many as 13 IPPs had signed MoUs with the state government in 2006 for setting up thermal power plants with a cumulative capacity of 70,000 MW.

Nine of them have progressed in implementing projects, energy minister Surya Narayan Patra said, adding that only two companies have been found lagging.

While GMR Energy Ltd made maximum progress in setting up its proposed thermal power plant at an investment of Rs 4,200 crore, Mahanadi Aban Power Company Ltd and CESC Ltd have been lagging behind the schedule, he said.

The nine IPPs which have made substantial progress had already availed of coal blocks or coal linkages for use.

Even some of the IPPs have already placed orders for equipment with different foreign companies, the minister said.

The IPPs which have made progress are Navbharat Power Ltd, Essar Power, Tata Power, Lanc Industries Limited, Jindal Photo Limited, Bhusan Energy Limited, Monnet Power Company Limited, Sterlite Energy Ltd and GMR Energy Ltd.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard.

The state government has decided to upgrade the Angul-Chendipada road keeping in view the scores of industries and mining projects coming up in the area. The cost of this road work is estimated at RS 150 crore which will be shared by the industries including the public sector Mahanadi Coalfield Ltd (MCL).

…

At present, there is a 51.5 km long single narrow road from Angul to Budapal. A blue print has, meanwhile, been prepared to double the width of the road. The road expansion works would be executed by the state works department, according to the Executive Engineer (Roads), Sanjay Sahu, here.

The project includes construction of a by-pass around Angul town to link up the proposed road with the NH 42 instead of jamming traffic in the town, he added.

As per the proposal, eight industries will contribute funds for the construction of 23 km long Angul-Kosala section of the road doubling work while MCL will bear the cost of next 17 km long road connecting Kosala to Chhendipada. The next patch of the road will be upgraded by another group of industries beyond Chhendipda.

However, the construction of Angul by-pass will be shared by these industries equally, Sahu added. The industries which will be funding the road project include MCL, Jindal Steel and Power Ltd, Monnet Ispat and Energy Ltd, Kalinga Coal Mining Ltd, Tata Sponge, Rugta Mines, Utkal Coal Ltd and others.

Following is excerpted from a report in Pragativadi.

According to a preliminary estimation made by the Directorate of Geology, nearly 8 million tonnes (MT) of bauxite was reserved at Ushabali plateau in Kandhmal district. Estimation regarding bauxite reserve in Kandhamal district is preliminary. The volume of reserve could be more, an official said, adding survey work would be extended to nearby areas this year.

The Orissa Mining Corporation (OMC) recently reviewed the mineral survey activities taken up the Directorate of Geology to find new reserve, particularly iron ore, which was in demand as the state had signed MoU for setting up of at least 46 steel plants.

The Directorate had completed survey of Hirapur area in Nabarangpur district for iron ore deposits and had also undertaken fresh surveys in Joda, Badbil in Keonjhar and Daitari in Jajpur.

Though the directorate had completed iron ore survey work by using drilling method at Tensa area of Sundargarh district, the findings were under study, sources said.

Similarly, the survey had also concluded that small diamond reserve could be traced at Dharamabandha and Nangalbod area of Nuapada district where the precious metal was found along with stones.

As per a report in Telegraph these routes are:

• Jaleswar – Kirtania on Subarnarekha
• Balasore – Chandipur on Budhabalanga (12 km)
• Rajnagar – Aul , Aul – Aetepur and Singhapur – Aul on Kharsuan (63 km)
• Rushikulya – Badanadi on Rushikulya
• Netapur – Pathna on Kushabhadra
• Kundhei – Siroi on Prachi
• Balabhadrapur – Nuagarh on Daya (9 km)

Following is an excerpt from that report in Telegraph.

The state government has initiated steps to conduct surveys to identify river stretches having the potential for detailed hydro-graphic surveys and detailed project reports.

Rail India Techno Economic Services (RITES) has been engaged by the state government for conducting the studies, …

As many as 13 rivers … were identified by the government for the studies.

Of them, a 12km stretch of Budhabalang, three stretches comprising a total of 63km in the Kharsuan and 9km of the Daya have been identified for further detailed hydro-graphic surveys and traffic studies to be conducted by RITES.

Also locations, for the provision of infrastructure, would also be identified in these stretches, officials said.

According to preliminary studies, the identified rivers have enough potential and economic viability to serve as an effective waterway.

RITES has, therefore, suggested the development of an inland water transport corridor comprising three stretches of the Kharsuan river from Rajnagar to Aul-Singhpur-Aetpur and extend it up to Jajpur along the Brahmani.

The body has proposed to develop another corridor on the Daya up to Balugaon on the banks of the Chilika lake.

At present, the state directorate of ports and inland water transports run passenger launch services in Chandbali, Chilika and Astarang.

Initiatives are being taken by the directorate to start motor launch service in reservoirs of major and medium dam projects.

A river project report for construction of jetties and waiting halls in navigational routes at a cost of Rs 5.34 crore, prepared by ocean engineering centre of the IIT, Chennai, has been submitted to Nabard for assistance under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund.

Update: See http://picasaweb.google.com/ahimanikya/BhubaneswarFresco for hundreds of pictures.

See pictures at http://www.bhubaneswar-images.blogspot.com/ and http://indiahistoryspeaks.blogspot.com/2008/05/bhubaneswar-from-city-of-temples-to.html.

Following is an excerpt from a news report in Financial Express.

The Centre has selected Bhubaneswar as one of the 40 ITIRs planned in the country. It will provide financial assistance for development of infrastructures required for the ITIRs.

The state IT secretary, PK Mahapatra, said the Centre has aksed the state government to prepare the DPR so that fund could be provided for developing the infrastructures of the ITIR.

The detailed project report (DPR) for the Bhubaneswar ITIR will be prepared by IL&FS Infrastructures Ltd in collaboration with the state-owned Industrial Infrastructure Development Corp (IDCO).

The Centre plans to set up the ITIRs in line of the Petroleum, Chemicals & Petrochemicals Investment Region (PCPIRs) in the country to attract investment into the IT sector.

Mahapatra said the government has decided to put in place a new Information & Communication Tehcnologies Policy (ICT) in the state. The last ICT Policy was announced in 2004. The new policy will be formulated after studying the ICT polices of IT-advanced states like Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, he said.

The chief minister, Naveen Patnaik, on Thursday reviewed the development taking place in the IT sector in the state at a high level meeting. The Infocity-II will come up at Jalna in the outskirt of Bhubaneswar over an area of 500 acres. A sum of Rs 150 crore will be spent for developing the new IT facility.

The government, meanwhile, has asked the IIT Kharagpur, which is preparing the master plan for the greater Bhubaneswar city, to ease the traffic for the Infocity-I. At the meeting it was told that the Software Technology Park (STPI) at Berhampur is going to be functional from the first week of September, 2008. Orissa has two STPIs at Bhubaneswar and Rourkela. Another STIP is coming up at Balasore.

Following is some additional information on this from a report in Telegraph.

In April 2008, the cabinet committee on economic affairs had cleared a policy to set up ITIRs over a minimum area of 40sqkm each. The Centre last month confirmed the identification of Bhubaneswar as one of the sites for the proposed ITIRs, he said.

The ITIRs have been conceptualised as magnets for investment creating employment opportunities and growth in the area. They are expected to reduce the pressure on existing urban centres by enabling growth of new townships and dispersal of industry. The regions would be a combination of IT, ITES and electronics hardware manufacturing units, public utilities, residential area, social infrastructure and administrative services.

Every state government is supposed to ensure provision of physical infrastructure such as power, water, road, transportation, sewerage and effluent treatment facilities, the Centre is supposed to facilitate development of national highways, airport and railway links for ITIRs.

Earlier we discussed the national waterway 5. It seems finally the state government has woken up and ready to do its part. Following is an excerpt from a report in Telegraph.

Plans are afoot to develop a national waterway (NW-5) connecting the Brahmani and Mahanadi with the now-defunct East Coast Canal of the British days, extending up to Geonkhali in Bengal, at an estimated cost of Rs 2,000 crore.

As a follow-up measure, the Orissa government today set up a task force, headed by the development commissioner and secretaries of water resources, commerce and transport, forest and environment and revenue departments, to work out an action plan.

… The proposed waterway is being seen as an alternative to the congested rail and road routes.

An estimated 18.07 million tonnes of inland water transport traffic is expected to be carried out on the waterway in the 10th year of its commissioning, said commerce and transport secretary Suresh Chandra Mohapatra.

Cargo, such as coal, fertiliser, cement, iron ore, paddy, rice, seeds, coconut, wheat, sugar, edible oils, bamboo, straw, jute and industrial products may be transported through the route.

The proposed waterway includes a 91km stretch in Bengal (Geonkhali to Nasirabad), while the rest (532km) would be in Orissa.

A bill was introduced in Parliament on December 8, 2006, for the declaration of the Talcher-Dhamra stretch of the Brahmani-Kharsuan-Dhamra rivers, Geonkhali-Charbatia stretch of the East Coast Canal, Charbatia-Dhamra stretch of the Matai and the Mahanadi delta rivers between Mangalgadi and Paradip as national waterways.

… Preparation of the detailed project report has been entrusted with the Gurgaon-based Wapcos (India) Limited, while the preparation of the final report is underway.

Similarly, environmental impact assessment study and preparation of environment management plan are also on, Mohapatra said.

New Delhi-based CES (India) Private Limited submitted the final draft report of the environmental impact study to the Union government last year.

While the Union government would be funding the project, the state government will provide the required land, free of cost.

The land acquisition process and rehabilitation of people living along the 100m wide corridor is to be initiated by the government, besides providing technical details and data to consultants for completing the detailed project report.

The major works include construction of four barrages at an estimated cost of Rs 900 crore, renovation of 217km East Coast Canal, widening of narrow canals, modification of bridges and roads, bank protection and setting up four terminals at Talcher, Balasore, Nasirabad and Rajnagar.

The minimum bed width and depth of the waterway (for 406 river delta portion) will be 45m and 2m respectively to handle vessels of 500tonnes carrying capacity.

In the first phase, the bed width and depth for the 217km East Coast Canal portion will be 32m and 1.5m respectively for vessel size of 200 tonnes.

The map was obtained from the Team Orissa web site.

The map was obtained from the Team Orissa web site.

This map was obtained from the Team Orissa web site.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Times of India.

Venezuela’s national oil company PdVSA is in talks with IndianOil Corporation for taking up to 49% stake in a 15 million tonne refinery the flagship Indian refiner-marketer is building in Orissa’s Paradip at an investment of a little under Rs 30,000 crore.

“We have received interest from PdVSA. We are evaluating the offer,” a senior company executive, requsting anonymity, said on the sidelines of the 19th World Petroleum Congress here. “We want a partner not for money but for some value. In this case, PdVSA has said it can supply Venezuelan crude to the refinery. IndianOil would look at getting at least half, or 7.5 million tonnes, of Paradip refinery’s crude requirement from Venezuela.”
…

there are other factors that could work for the PdVSA deal. Venezuelan crude is one of the toughest to process and needs refineries with high complexity ratings. IndianOil has designed the Paradip unit to accept the toughest, heaviest and the dirtiest crudes. “Our refinery will have a Nelson Complexity Index of 15,” the IndianOil executive said. Reliance Petroleum’s upcoming export refinery at Jamnagar, which is billed the most advanced, is rated at 14. Besides, India offers strategic locational advantage from where exports can even happen to as far as the US.

Following are excerpts from a report in the Economic Times.

A 12-member Chinese team will arrive here on July 12 on a week-long visit to inspect the railway stations at Bhubaneswar and Byppanahalli in Bangalore.

The countries had signed a Memorandum-of-Understanding (MoU) in this regard on January 14 during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Beijing. The agreement, valid for three years, envisages development of rail-related programmes of mutual interest.

The high-level delegation headed by Wu Wei, Director of Sino-India Railway Cooperation Working Group, will be assisted by RITES, which will provide details required for the work.

However, a senior official of the Railways Ministry said a preliminary assessment has revealed that the land available at Bhubaneswar railway station is inadequate for the project.

In that case, a nearby station at Baranga may be chosen for development into a world class station, he said, adding a final decision will be taken only after consultations with the Chinese team.
…

“After visiting these places, the team will share their views with us about the way to go ahead with the project.”

Several new trains, extensions, and frequency increases relevant to Orissa were announced in the 2008-09 Railway budget and the subsequent debate in the parliament. Details about their timings and the route they will take will appear in the Time Table that is usually published on July 1st. Few days prior to that the major changes are released. Following are three such releases. From http://eastcoastrailway.gov.in/custom/press_release/index.php.

Ministry of Railways has decided to introduce eight new trains, extension of two trains, increase in frequency of two trains, speed up of seven trains and timings change for seven trains in ECoR jurisdiction in the New Time Table being implemented from 1st July’08:

NEW TRAINS

Two daily new trains, three weekly new trains, two bi-weekly new trains and one tri-weekly trains will be introduced in ECoR jurisdiction in the new Time Table. Introduction of these trains will be notified later.

One new bi-weekly Garib Rath Super Fast Express train will be introduced between Puri and Howrah. 2882 Puri-Howrah Garib Rath Super Fast Express train will leave Puri at 10.00p.m on every Monday and Wednesday and will arrive Howrah at 07.05a.m on the next days. Similarly, in the return direction, 2881 Howrah-Puri Garib Rath Super Fast Express will leave Howrah at 08.55p.m on every Tuesday and Thursday and will arrive Puri at 05.50a.m on the following days.

One new bi-weekly Super Fast Express train will be introduced between Bhubaneswar and Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (LTT). 2880 Bhubaneswar – LTT Super Fast Express train will leave Bhubaneswar at 07.20a.m on every Monday and Thursday and will arrive LTT at 01.35p.m on the next days. Similarly, in the return direction, 2879 LTT-Bhubaneswar Super Fast Express will leave LTT at 00.15a.m on every Wednesday & Saturday (Midnight of Tuesday & Friday) and will arrive Bhubaneswar at 07.10a.m on the next days.

…

One new weekly Express train will be introduced between Puri and Darbhanga. 8419 Puri-Darbhanga Express train will leave Puri at 02.10p.m on every Thursday and will arrive Darbhanga at 11.05a.m on the next days. Similarly, in the return direction, 8420 Darbhanga-Puri Express will leave Darbhanga at 07.15a.m on every Saturday and will arrive Puri at 03.30a.m on the following days.

One new weekly Express train will be introduced between Bhagalpur and Yeshvantpur via Bhubaneswar. 2254 Bhagalpur-Yeshvantpur Super Fast Express train will leave Bhagalpur at 01.30p.m on every Wednesday and will arrive Yeshvantpur at 09.15a.m on the next 2nd days. Similarly, in the return direction, 2253 Yeshvantpur-Bhagalpur Super Fast Express will leave Yeshvantpur at 12.45p.m on every Saturday and will arrive Bhagalpur at 08.30p.m on the 2nd next day.

Another new weekly Express train will be introduced between New Dibrugarh Town and Yeshvantpur via Bhubaneswar. 5902 New Dibrugarh-Yeshvantpur Express train will leave New Dibrugarh at 06.45p.m on every Friday and will arrive Yeshvantpur at 12.10p.m on the next 2nd days. Similarly, in the return direction, 5901 Yeshvantpur-New Dibrugarh Express will leave Yeshvantpur at 11.55p.m on every Monday and will arrive New Dibrugarh at 08.00p.m on the 2nd next day.

One new daily Express train will be introduced between Puri and Keonjhargarh. 8416 Puri-Keonjhargarh Express train will leave Puri at 05.25a.m regularly and will arrive Keonjhargarh at 12.00 noon on the same day. Similarly, in the return direction, 8415 Keonjhargarh-Puri Express will leave Keonjhargarh at 01.00p.m and will arrive Puri at 08.30p.m.

Another new daily Express train will be introduced between Bhubaneswar and Paradeep. 8414 Bhubaneswar-Paradeep Express train will leave Bhubaneswar at 07.05a.m regularly and will arrive Paradeep at 09.45a.m. Similarly, in the return direction, 8413 Paradeep-Puri Express will leave Paradeep at 06.00p.m and will arrive Bhubaneswar at 09.10p.m.

EXTENSION:

Two bi-weekly express trains i.e. Nizamabad-Visakhapatnam bi-weekly and Varanasi-Ranchi bi-weekly will be extended to Sambalpur in the New Railway Time Table which will be notified later.

INCREASE IN FREQUENCY

The frequency of Bhubaneswar-Baripada-Bhubaneswar tri-weekly superfast express has been decided to increase the frequency to six days in a week from 30th June 2008. 2892 Bhubaneswar-Baripada Superfast Express will run daily w.e.f. 30th June 2008 except Saturdays from Bhubaneswar. Similarly, in the return direction, 2891 Baripada-Bhubaneswar Superfast Express will run daily w.e.f 1st July 2008 except Sundays from Baripada.

The frequency of Bhubaneswar-New Delhi-Bhubaneswar bi-weekly Rajdhani express has been decided to run as tri-weekly in the new Time Table which will notify later. 2421 Bhubaneswar-New Delhi Rajdhani Express will run on every Sunday, Wednesday and Saturday. Similarly, in the return direction, 2422New Delhi-Bhubaneswar Rajdhani Express will run on every Sunday, Monday and Friday in the new time table.

SPEED UP AND CHANGE IN TIMINGS

Seven trains have been speeded up in the new time-table including the timings of 14 trains at different stations have been changed. Bhubaneswar-Visakhapatnam Intercity Express, Bhubaneswar-Howrah Jan Shatabdi Express, Okha-Puri Express, Sambalpur-Puri Intercity Express , Raipur-Bhubaneswar Express, New Delhi-Puri Neelachal Express and Pondicherry-Bhubaneswar Express have been speeded up from 5 minutes to one hour 50 minutes from 1st July.

8411 Bhubaneswar-Visakhapatnam Intercity Express will leave Bhubaneswar at 6.45a.m instead of 5.25a.m and will arrive Visakhapatnam at 02.35p.m instead of 02.10p.m. The timings for this train at other stations have also been changed.

8412 Visakhapatnam-Bhubaneswar Intercity Express will leave Visakhapatnam at 02.55 p.m. instead of 02.35 p.m. and will arrive Bhubaneswar at 11.20 p.m. instead of 10.55 p.m.

2801 Puri-New Delhi Purusottam Express will leave Puri at 09.45p.m instead of 10.00p.m and will arrive New Delhi at 05.05a.m instead of 04.55 a.m.

2896/2888 Puri-Howrah Weekly Express trains will leave Puri at 10.00p.m instead of earlier 09.45 p.m. and will arrive Howrah at 07.05a.m instead of 06.45 a.m.

2892 Bhubaneswar-Baripada Express will leave Bhubaneswar at 05.10p.m instead of 05.30p.m and will arrive Baripada at 10.10p.m instead of 10.30 p.m.

8304 Puri-Sambalpur Intercity Express will leave Puri at 03.45p.m instead of 04.30 p.m. and will arrive Sambalpur at 10.10 p.m. instead of 10.45 p.m.

8463 Bhubaneswar-Bangalore Prashanti Express will leave Bhubaneswar at 05.45 a.m. instead of 04.15 a.m. and will arrive Bangalore at 11.30a.m instead of 10.00 a.m.

222 Puri-Angul Passenger will leave Puri at 04.00 p.m. instead of 03.30 p.m. and will arrive Angul at 09.15 p.m. instead of 08.30 p.m.

2074 Bhubaneswar-Howrah Jana Shatabdi Express will leave Bhubaneswar at 06.20 a.m. instead of 06.00 a.m. and will arrive Howrah at 12.50 p.m.

8402 Okha-Puri Express leaving Okha at 07.15 a.m. will arrive Puri at 10.50 a.m. instead of 12.40 p.m.

8303 Sambalpur-Puri Intercity Express will leave Sambalpur at 06.10 a.m. instead of 06.15 a.m. and will arrive Puri at 12.45 p.m. instead of 01.30 p.m.

8426 Raipur –Bhubaneswar Express will leave Raipur at 05.15 p.m. instead of 05.00 p.m. and will arrive Bhubaneswar at 07.35 a.m. instead of 07.45 a.m.

2816 New Delhi –Puri Neelachal Express leaving New Delhi at 06.30 a.m. will arrive Puri at 12.10 p.m. instead of 01.15 p.m.

2897 Pondicherry –Bhubaneswar Express leaving Pondicherry at 06.15 p.m. will arrive Bhubaneswar at 06.40 p.m. instead of 07.25 p.m.

The timings for many of these above trains at different stations have also been changed. Passengers are requested to enquire about the change of timings of the trains at different nearest stations to avoid inconvenience. Railway sources have also advised all concerned to dial "139" to know all details about new train services. This BSNL numbered can be dialed from any land line, GSM or CDMA connections.

From http://www.serailway.gov.in/hq/pro/default.htm.

• One pair of Bi-weekly Super Fast Garib Rath Express [2881/2882] between Howrah-Puri-Howrah
• One pair of Weekly Express [2254/2253] between Bhagalpur-Yesvantpur-Bhagalpur via Howrah and Kharagpur.
• One pair of Weekly Express [5902/5901] between New Dibrugarh Town-Yesvantpur via Howrah and Kharagpur.
• One pair of Bi-weekly Super Fast Express [2880/2879] between Bhubaneswar-LTT via Jharsuguda.
• One pair of Weekly Express [8419/8420] between Puri-Darbhanga via Kharagpur- Asansol.
• 8611/8612 Ranchi-Varanasi Express will be extended to run from Sambalpur twice a week with new number 8311/8312 as Sambalpur-Ranchi- Varanasi Express.
• 2021/2022 Howrah-Barbil Janshatabdi Express from existing six days a week to daily service with effect from 1st. July, 2008.
• 2421/2422 Bhubaneswar-New Delhi Rajdhani Express via Kharagpur and Adra from existing bi-weekly to tri-weekly.
• 2891/2892 Baripada-Bhubaneswar Express from existing tri-weekly to six days a week w.e.f. 1st. July, 2008 ex. Baripada.
• 2831/2832 Ranchi-Bhubaneswar Garib Rath Express will originate/terminate from/to Hatia instead of Ranchi with effect from 19th. August, 2008.

From the South Central railway ad:

• The biweekly Nizamabad-Visakhapatnam (8309/8310) express will be extended to Sambalpur. It will leave Sambalpur on Mondays and Fridays at 9:15 AM and reach Secunderabad at 8:20 AM and Nizamabad at 11:50 the next morning. It will leave Nizamabad at 18:35 on Tuesdays and Saturdays, leave Secunderabad at 21:45 and then reach Sambalpur at 21:30 the next day.
• Prashanthi Express timings have been changed effective July 1 to leave Bhubaneswar about 2 hours later than its original time. Earlier it used to leave Duvadda at 11:59. Now it will leave Duvadda at 13:42. It used to leave Bhubaneswar at 4:15 AM; now it will leave at 5:45 AM.