The Union Railway ministry has agreed to make the defunct railway track between Patna Sahib Junction and Patna Ghat functional besides upgrading and beautifying Patna Ghat station to facilitate Sikh pilgrims visited Takth Patna Sahab following a request made by Union food processing industry minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal here today.Mrs Badal, who called on Railway minister Suresh Prabhu to make these requests to ensure pilgrims visiting Patna Sahib during the 350th anniversary celebrations of Guru Gobind Singh ji were not inconvenienced, also urged him to rename the Patna Ghat railway station in keeping with Sikh history. The Railway minister said he has taken up the issue with the Bihar government. Chief minister Parkash Singh Badal had also written a letter in this regard to his Bihar counterpart recently.
Disclosing details of the meeting, Mrs Harsimrat Badal said the Railway minister assured her that the ministry would run a shuttle service between the present in operational track between Patna Sahab and Patna Ghat. She said this shuttle service, which would be run between the 10 km tract every hour, would cater to 800 passengers during each journey. Thanking Mr Suresh Prabhu for acceding to her request, Mrs Badal said this would facilitate pilgrims in approaching Patna Sahab Gurdwara during the 350th anniversary celebrations as the present road leading to the Gurdwara was very narrow and congested. She also requested the Railway minister that the Patna Ghat station be beautified as per Sikh architecture heritage. The SAD MP also requested the Union government to take up the issue of creating road access from the Patna Ghat station to the ghat of the Ganga river. She said this issue would also be taken up with the Bihar government. In another development, Mrs Badal announced she would also request the Punjab government to run special trains to Patna Sahab under the Mukh Mantri Teerath Yatra Yojna from next year.