Maharashtra: Railways' road over-bridge becomes operational in Kalyan-Vitthalwadi section in Thane

File photo/Central Railway

A road over-bridge (ROB) passing over railway tracks has become operational between Kalyan and Vitthalwadi in Maharashtra's Thane district, following which manned level crossings at these points have been shut, officials said on Friday.

PTI reported that the ROB had been commissioned by the Central Railway and the Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation Ltd (MRVC).

"The manned level crossing gate no. 1A between Kalyan-Vitthalwadi has been closed for road traffic as the option of a new ROB flyover is now made available. With this, a continuous 5 km stretch of Kalyan-Vitthalwadi-Ulhasnagar and some portions in Ulhasnagar-Ambarnath section has become free of any Level crossing gates," the Central Railway said in the release.

It will help in ensuring more safety and punctuality of suburban local and express trains in this section. And it will also help increase the speed of trains, it said.

The work of ROB flyover construction worth Rs 17 crore started on June 10, 2022, and was completed on August 8 this year, the release said.

"The construction work was completed in 14 months. It is one of the fastest completion of construction of a ROB flyover," it added.

Closure of this level crossing gate and ROB flyover opening will reduce rail and road traffic detention. It will save an average of one to two minutes of each train, adding that a total of 224 suburban local trains, 80 mail express trains and 20 goods trains run in this section daily.

Meanwhile, the forest department and police in Thane district conducted a raid at a farmhouse and seized two tonnes of smuggled logs of Khair wood worth around Rs 1.50 lakh, an official said on Friday.

The raid was conducted in Padgha on Wednesday, he said.

Khair wood is used for extraction of 'kattha', which is one of the essential ingredients of making paan, an after-food mouth freshener. The wood and bark of this tree are also used for medicinal purposes.

"Acting on a tip-off, forest officials and a team of police raided the farmhouse, where the smuggled Khair wood was found stocked. A total of two tonnes of wood worth Rs 1.50 lakh was seized," the police official said.

An offence against the owner of the farmhouse, identified as Sahil Chiklekar, was registered under various sections of the Indian Forest Act and the Indian Penal Code (IPC), he said.

Range Forest Officer Shailesh Deore said an investigation into the case is being conducted (Agencies)