NEW DELHI, Sept. 10 -- The Union cabinet on Wednesday approved infrastructure projects worth a total of Rs.7,616 crore for Bihar, Jharkhand, and West Bengal, including major upgrades in road and rail connectivity.

One project involves doubling a 177-km railway line connecting the three states at a cost of Rs.3,169 crore, information and broadcasting minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said after the meeting. The second is a Rs.4,447 crore highway project linking Buxar and Bhagalpur in Bihar.

Bihar heads to assembly polls later this year.

The 82-km, four-lane stretch on the Buxar-Bhagalpur high-speed corridor will cut travel time by an hour and pass through Mokama, Barahiya, Lakhisarai, Jamalpur, and Munger, eventually connecting to Bhagalpur, an...