Thrissur: Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw expressed his support for the state government's ambitious semi-high-speed rail project, K-Rail, on Sunday. However, he said the Centre would consider backing the controversial rail project only if the state proposed solutions to the technical and environmental issues with the current plan.

The Centre's stance, according to the minister, is to proceed in cooperation with the state government. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had earlier met with the Union Minister in Delhi to discuss matters related to the K-Rail project.

Ashwini Vaishnaw was in the state to conduct an inspection to review the railway infrastructure, including the Amrit Bharat and ongoing station redevelopment projects. He boarded a special train from Aluva earlier today. He was accompanied by RN Singh, General Manager of Southern Railway, Dr Manish Thaplyal, Divisional Railway Manager of the Thiruvananthapuram Division, and other senior officials.

Talking to the media, he said the Centre was also committed to developing the Angamaly-Erumeli Sabarimala railway line with the state government.

“The state has put forth certain conditions regarding the project, which the Centre is currently reviewing. A similar agreement to the one made between the Railways and the Maharashtra government is also possible in Kerala. Additionally, more MEMU trains will be allocated for Kerala,” said the minister.

He further said complaints have been received that other trains are being delayed due to the operation of the Vande Bharat Express in the Ernakulam-Alappuzha-Kayamkulam sector. As a solution, the Railways is considering rerouting the Vande Bharat Express through Kottayam instead of Alappuzha, said the minister.

The K Rail, a semi-high-speed rail corridor, aims to ease transportation along the entire north and south stretch of Kerala and reduce travel time to less than four hours, as opposed to 12 to 14 hours at present.

The SilverLine would cover a 530-kilometre stretch from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasaragod and be developed by K-Rail, a joint venture of the Kerala government and the Ministry of Railways.

The Opposition Congress and the BJP in Kerala have been protesting against the SilverLine project, saying it will affect the families who will be displaced due to its implementation.