MADURAI: The Southern Railway is set to introduce the Kavach Train Collision Avoidance System on the Tiruchy-Tirunelveli railway corridor, with the Detailed Project Report (DPR) already approved for an estimated cost of Rs 110.78 crore.
Details the project and other operational aspects of the Madurai Division emerged through an RTI reply sought by railway activist Dayanand Krishnan. .
According to the response from R Siva, Senior Divisional Operations Manager and Public Information Officer of the Madurai Division, two stations in the Madurai-Dindigul railway line section will soon be upgraded with electronic interlocking systems at a cost of Rs 23.96 crore.
The RTI reply further stated that the Tiruchy–Tirunelveli route, spanning 316.7 route kilometres, has received DPR approval for implementation of the Kavach system at an estimated cost of Rs 110.78 crore.
The Madurai Division of Southern Railway currently has 97 railway stations, of which 59 are equipped with Road Relay Interlocking (RRI) systems and 38 with Electronic Interlocking systems. The division also has 107 non-interlocked level crossing gates.
In terms of track utilisation during 2024–25, the double-line trunk corridors between Dindigul–Madurai and Madurai–Virudhunagar recorded higher utilisation. Among single-line routes, the Manamadurai–Rameswaram railway line section recorded the highest utilisation at 77.5%, while several other single-line branch routes operate at moderate capacity, mostly below 50%.
Speaking to TNIE, Krishnan welcomed the proposed Kavach safety system but urged the railway division to further upgrade the route with automatic block signalling. He pointed out that the Madurai Division serves major temple tourism destinations such as Meenakshi Amman Temple, Palani Murugan Temple and Thiruchendur Murugan Temple, yet train operations remain limited despite available track capacity.
He suggested that introducing more Vande Metro and MEMU services to destinations including Thoothukudi, Thiruchendur, Sengottai, Pollachi, Bodinayakanur, Rameswaram and Madurai could help commuters shift from long-distance mainline trains to suburban-style services.
When contacted, an official from the Madurai Division of Southern Railway declined to comment on the RTI reply.