New Delhi, Feb 9(PTI) Railways' ambitious Rs one lakh crore Dedicated Freight Corridor project today got a push from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who directed central departments concerned and states to give the project "highest priority" and expedite work which will be monitored by the PMO. Singh reviewed the progress of the project at a meeting, where it was decided that state governments would set up monitoring committees to resolve the issues especially land-acquisition in an expeditious manner so that it is completed by the projected deadline of 2017. The Prime Minister directed that the Dedicated Freight Corridor Project should be given the highest priority by central ministries and urged the State Governments to also do so, a statement by the PMO said. The 3300-km long project, which will criss-cross various states, is expected to be a backbone of India's economic transport facility. The PMO will be closely monitoring progress of the project so that necessary action is taken in a time-bound manner, the statement said. At the meeting, the Chief Secretaries and the representatives of the states assured full cooperation of their state governments in taking forward this important project. The representatives of the nodal authority Dedicated Freight Corridor Cooperation India Limited (DFCCIL) will be overseeing progress of work with the targeted project completion date being March 2017. The DFCCIL has said that 67 per cent of the land-acquisition has been completed through the Railway Amendment Act 2008 and as of now the project by and large is on target. More
