CHENNAI: Southern Railway has proposed to introduce new daily trains on the Tambaram - Rameswaram and Tambaram - Dhanapur routes, along with weekly and biweekly express trains from Tirunelveli, Nagercoil and parts of the country. There is also plan to extend the Chennai Beach - Vellore MEMU and Chennai Beach - Villupuram passenger train services up to Tiruvannamalai.
Proposals for the introduction of new trains, extension of existing services and increasing train frequencies were submitted to the railway board a few months ago, following requests from the Time Table Committee meeting. A directive from the coaching division of Southern Railway, dated April 2, instructs divisional officials to assess the feasibility of implementing these proposals.
Despite being a major pilgrimage and tourist attraction, Tiruvannamalai does not have a direct train to Chennai. Commuters have to travel up to Villupuram, which is 61km away, if they want to reach Chennai by train.
Sources said Tiruchy division had proposed extending the Chennai Beach - Vellore MEMU to Tiruvannamalai a few years ago, but it could not materialise due to issues with the maintenance of the rake. “This time, the MEMU from Vellore or Villupuram, or both, will be extended to Tiruvannamalai depending on operational feasibility. Upon obtaining approval from the railway board, the new train services will be launched,” added the official.
The proposal includes new bi/tri-weekly trains from Coimbatore to Tambaram via Tiruchy and Palakkad, Tirunelveli to Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra, Nagercoil to Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (Kurla near Mumbai), Tirunelveli to Jodhpur, Tambaram to Santragachi, and Rameswaram to Malda Town.
SR gets new PR officer
Chennai: M Senthamil Selvan took over as the new chief public relations officer of Southern Railway on Thursday. B Guganesan, who has been holding this post, was transferred to the deputy GM (general), Southern Railway. Senthamil Selvan previously served as the deputy GM and secretary to GM.