Wed Jan 22 21:44:53 IST 2025: ## Kalaburagi Chamber of Commerce to Stage Rail Roko Over Decades-Long Railway Division Demand

**Kalaburagi, Karnataka, January 22, 2025** – The Kalyana Karnataka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KKCCI) will hold a rail roko at Kalaburagi Railway Station this Friday to protest the continued delay in establishing a railway division in the city. The protest, which will target the Pune-Secunderabad Shatabdi Express, marks an escalation of a four-decade-long campaign.

KKCCI officials, including president Shashikant Patil and honorary president Lingaraj Appa, held a press conference Wednesday to announce the action. They accused the Union government of neglecting the region and expressed concerns that the lack of a dedicated railway division is hindering economic growth.

The demand for a Kalaburagi railway division dates back to a 1984 recommendation by the Justice H.C. Sareen Committee. While the proposal was revived several times, including a 2014 announcement alongside a Jammu railway division, the Kalaburagi project was ultimately dropped. Despite land allocation and project report approval, the Union government prioritized the Jammu division.

KKCCI officials criticized the Railways Ministry for its handling of Kalyana Karnataka’s railway infrastructure, citing the region’s division across three railway zones and five railway divisions. They also raised concerns about revenue diversion from Kalaburagi to the Solapur division of the Central Railway, suggesting political influence is hindering the region’s development.

If the demand remains unmet in the upcoming Union Budget, the KKCCI warned of intensified protests, including the possibility of a campaign for statehood for the Kalyana Karnataka region within the next decade. The organization plans to send a delegation to meet the Railway Minister and, if necessary, will move the protest to Delhi’s Jantar Mantar. Support for the rail roko has been sought from various local business associations.

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