Railway test track may hit roadblock at Sambhar lake, here’s why

The lake holds international importance, hence deliberations were made to allot land inside the lake to lay the track in the 4th state wetland authority meeting held on April 12.

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The dedicated 59-km railway test track, may hit a roadblock as the authorities are reconsidering the proposal to allot a portion of land falling inside the Sambhar Salt lake, Rajasthan. The lake holds international importance, hence deliberations were made to allot land inside the lake to lay the track in the 4th state wetland authority meeting on April 12. 

However, reportedly, as it is not possible to allot lake’s land, the wetland authorities may ask railways to look for an alternative. According to the proposal of the dedicated test track (Broad Gauge line), of the 59 km track, 18 km lies within the lake, while the rest of 41 kms falls outside the lake. 

The no objection certificate (NoC) by the revenue department will be given on condition that no construction will be done in kasras of Sambhar Lake. If the concerned railways authorities will agree on this condition then only the revenue department will allot 51.8-hectare of Nawa village land that lies outside the periphery of Khasra number 1 of Sambhar lake. 

The government land of Gudha, Bavli, Mohanpura and Khardiya has already been allotted by the state for the project, and the allotment for the remaining govt land is in the final stages. 

The completion of this project is by December 22 and railway has until now spent approximately Rs 160 crore on embankment and bridge works of the project. Once the project is complete, it is believed that India will enter the league of countries like United States, China, Germany and Australia that hae dedicated tracks for train trials.