Preparations to Operate Janakpur-Jayanagar Railway within Magh:
The train, which was brought by the government from India two months ago, will be operational within the month of Magh 2077. The Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport has made necessary preparations for the operation of the Jayanagar-Kurtha railway.
Guru Bhattarai, general manager of the railway company, said that the train can be operated within one to one and a half months. According to him, the train will be operated as soon as the necessary maintenance, training and software work is completed. He informed that the staff needs training to operate the train. He said, "After that, the target is to complete it by the end of January." Bhattarai said that the structure built by India would be ready in 15 to 20 days. He said the Indian side was working on it. He says there will be no problem in operation even if there is little work left for them to do. Work is also underway to install a system on the computer-controlled railway. He said that it was possible to see where the train had reached, where it was stuck or any other problem.
The company is managing the necessary manpower including efficient and administrative. He said that some of the required staff will be permanent and some will be appointed temporarily. He informed that civil servants will be brought from the Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development. Earlier, the railway company had about 60 temporary employees and 12 permanent employees. Those employees remained in the company even though it was closed. The company is also planning to bring in 26 skilled Indian employees with knowledge of running trains.
As there is no manpower with experience in railways in Nepal, Indian employees are being brought under contract. He said that a proposal has been submitted to the ministry for that. After the decision of the Council of Ministers on the proposal of the ministry, the appointment of foreign employees is being taken forward. They are being brought from the agreement between the two governments. He said, "Employees are being appointed through an agreement between a Nepali company and an Indian company." As the Railway Act, 2020 is outdated, a new bill is in the parliament.
The people and traders of the area are expected to be comfortable in transportation after the operation of the train. Railways will further facilitate transportation. The government has planned to connect this railway to Bardibas as the east-west railway will also reach Bardibas. Two sets of demo trains had arrived on the 2nd of Ashoj last year to operate on the railway constructed with the financial and technical assistance of the Government of India. According to the Department of Railways, this train can carry 1,200 to 1,300 passengers sitting and standing. As it is a passenger train, only passenger bags and general luggage can be kept.
During the Rana period in Nepal, there was a railway service from Raxaul in India in 1984 BS to Amalekhgunj in Nepal and from Jayanagar to Janakpur in 1994 BS. The long-delayed railway service has moved ahead with the current government's national aspiration of 'Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepalis'. The construction of the railway from Kurtha to Jayanagar was completed last year.
The train will run for a total length of 35 km. Construction of an additional 17 km railway from Kurtha to Bijulpura has reached the final stage. The department has stated that the train will be operated soon in 52 km from Bijalpura.
