CHENNAI: In a significant development, the Southern Railway has approved a proposal to swap railway lines on the Tamil Nadu-Kerala border passing through Tirunelveli, Kanniyakumari and Kollam districts, between Madurai and Thiruvananthapuram divisions. In other words, Southern Railway is okay with having all railway lines within Tamil Nadu’s geographical area administered from within the State.
According to official sources, responding to a Railway Board’s communication in August, the Southern Railway Chief Transport Planning Manager (CTPM) has said that transferring the 161-km lines of Tirunelveli-Nagercoil and Kanniyakumari-Nagercoil-Thiruvananthapuram (excluding Thiruvananthapuram), administered by the Thiruvananthapuram division, to the Madurai division would be agreeable in terms of operations.
Similarly, there will not be any operational constraints in transferring the 89-km lines of Bhagavathipuram (excluding Bhagavathipuram)-Punalar-Kollam to the Thiruvananthapuram division from the Madurai division, said the CTPM report. The Bagavathipuram-Punalar-Kollam section is yet to thrown open for traffic. Responding to the Railway Board’s communication, the Thiruvananthapuram division officials raised concerns over coach maintenance works at Nagercoil and over transferring employees.
Subsequently, the Southern Railway sought an impact report from the Thiruvananthapuram division over maintenance and engineering issues that may arise if the tracks are swapped. “In terms of operations and administration, the swapping of tracks is agreeable,” said an official quoting the report sent to the Railway Board.
As the trains from Chennai to Nagercoil and Kanniyakumari are operated via Coimbatore, Palakkad, Ernakulam, Kollam and Thiruvananthapuram, for operational feasibility the lines were brought under the Thiruvananthapuram division in 1979. However, after completing the gauge conversion and electrification of the Tirunelveli-Nagercoil section, the 161-km long tracks remained under the jurisdiction of Thiruvananthapuram.
Since then, railway users and locals from these two districts have been demanding merger of the railway lines with the Madurai division, accusing the Thiruvananthapuram division of meting a step-motherly treatment. They allege that the revenue and infrastructure of the Nagercoil and Kanniyakumari stations are utilised for operating trains to Kerala.
“We could not get additional trains from Chennai and other parts because of lack of pit lines and stable lines in Nagercoil. The existing platforms, pit lines and stable lines at the Nagercoil junction are utilised for operating trains to Kerala,” said Kanniyakumari District Rail Users’ Association general secretary P Edward Jeni.
The long pending demand of rail users can now be addressed, as the gauge conversion works in the Punalur-Sengottai section, a 45 km track in Kollam district administrated by the Madurai division, are nearing completion.