Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), a Navratna CPSE under the Ministry of Railways, has successfully commissioned the 10.47 km-long Sigsigi-Karkatta-Untari Road railway section in Jharkhand. This vital section forms part of the Sonnagar-Patratu Third Line Project, a critical railway corridor facilitating coal transportation under the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya (DDU) division of the East Central Railway Zone.

Following a CRS inspection on 13th March 2025, the section was opened for train operations. The Sonnagar-Patratu corridor is among Indian Railways' busiest freight routes, playing a pivotal role in expediting coal deliveries to nearby super-thermal power plants. Spanning 291 km across Bihar's Aurangabad district and the Jharkhand districts of Ramgarh, Hazaribagh, Latehar, Palamu, and Garhwa, the third-line project is being implemented in phases by RVNL. With this latest commissioning, RVNL has successfully delivered 170.11 km of the route to date.

The project scope included electrification, modern signalling upgrades with Distributed Electronic Interlocking (EI) at Sigsigi, Karkatta, and Untari Road stations, as well as railway track modifications such as new turnouts, switch expansion joints, and upgraded platform levels to accommodate 24-coach trains. The infrastructure enhancements also involved constructing modern station buildings, two major bridges, 21 minor bridges, and limited-height subways.

The newly added third line will operate as the Up Line, while the existing middle line will serve as a reversible track to facilitate bi-directional train movement, reducing congestion and enhancing wagon turnaround efficiency.