COIMBATORE: After five days of gap, Salem Railway Division on Monday resumed train services between Mettupalayam and Udhagamandalam on the Nilgiri Mountain Railway (NMR). Railway sources 180 seats in the first, second and general classes were occupied.
“The train commenced as usual from Mettupalayam at 7.10 am and reached Udhagamandalam at 12.30 pm. We refunded ticket fare due to the cancellation of service for five days from December 14 to December 18,” said a senior official of the railway.
Though checks are made in roads leading to the hill town to prevent tourists bringing plastic materials including water bottle, no checks are conducted at the railway station. This resulted in tourists bringing water bottles and throwing away along the railway track after use, which poses threat to Bonnet macaques, gaur and other wild animals in the area.
Meanwhile, President of Nilgiris Heritage Steam Chariot demanded that more special trains be operated to attract tourists. He has recently sent a letter to the DRM of Salem Railway Division seeking to operate Night trip to Ketti from Udhagamandalam Railway station.
In a letter K Natarajan said that the train should be operated on December 31 since large number of tourists are expected to visit the Nilgiris for the New Year. “A similar service was operated in 2002 and 2005. If the service is operated now, it would help boost revenue for NMR,” he said.
Further, members of Pollachi train passenger welfare association sent a letter to Pollachi Sub Collector S Priyanka seeking steps to operate a daily over night train from Pollachi to Chennai Egmore or Tambaram via Palani, Dindigul, Trichy and Kumbakonam.