Trains on Yeliyur Stretch to Start Chugging by Nov-end

BENGALURU:   With the Commission of Rail Safety (CRS) giving the green signal on Monday to trains on the 28-km stretch between Yeliyur and Naganahalli on the Bengaluru-Mysuru sector, commuting between the two cities can be quicker.  Trains will be commissioned along this stretch by November-end.

“On November 16, permission was granted by CRS for trains to run at 90 km/hour between Yeliyur (Mandya) and Naganahalli (Mysuru). You can expect the first commercial run of a train by the end of this month,”

said Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), Constructions, South Western Railway, A K Gupta.  S K Mittal, Rail Safety Commissioner, South Western Railway, had inspected the stretch on November 13. When asked about a specific launch date, Divisional Railway Manager, Sanjiv Agarwal, said, “Trains could be allowed to run on the new track in 10 to 15 days.” On new trains, the DRM said, “New trains can be announced only by the Railway Ministry. Also, there are severe constraints at the city station regarding platforms and yard facilities.”

On the Track

• The cost of this stretch is `263 crore.
• It is a part of the 93-km Ramanagaram-Mysuru doubling project which cost `875 crore and is jointly funded by the State government and Railways.
• The doubling work alone cost `666 crore while the electrification work costs `209 crore, the CAO informed.
• The train from Yeliyur will have stoppages at Byadaranahalli, Pandavapura and Srirangapatna before touching Naganahalli.”

“Only for a distance of 1.5 km near Srirangapatna, where the line is still single due to the problem posed by the Tipu armoury, trains will run on a single track and it would become a double track after that.” Gupta added.