BENGALURU: Minister of State for Railways Suresh Angadi on Saturday agreed to a suggestion mooted by Bengaluru Central MP P C Mohan to shift the entire freight train operations from Whitefield in order to develop it into a transportation hub for suburban rail, Metro trains and BMTC buses.
Angadi was responding to Mohan’s recommendation during a function held to inaugurate the third entry of Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna railway station. The MP had proposed that the Inland Corporation Depot run by a Railway PSU, Container Corporation of India Ltd (Concor), and the Satellite Goods Terminal in Whitefield be relocated to outer areas such as Hoskote. To this, Angadi said, “I will take up the issue with the Centre and ensure that it is implemented within the time frame you (Mohan) want it to be done.” In 2012, consultancy firm RITES submitted the final report on suburban rail for the city in which it had proposed creating more freight terminals, initially in Bengaluru North and later in the South and West.
The Satellite Goods Terminal, spread over 100 acres, transports many products such as chemical fertilisers and foodgrains while the Inland Corporation Depot, spread over 125 acres, transports agricultural produce among other items through its massive containers, a top railway official said. “Nearly 85% of that transported through Inland Corporation Depot is being taken to the Chennai Port and then dispatched across the country,” he said. Mohan said that the 300 acres of space that would be gained after shifting them could be used to develop an intermodal transportation hub.
Asked about the feasibility of such a proposal, a senior official said this would have a major impact on the export and import. “The alternative location must have good rail connectivity like the depot in Whitefield, which has four lines running towards Jolarpet and Chennai,” he added.
Angadi also gave railway officials one month’s time to fix the problem of toilet waste running from the trains onto the tracks. The problem is so bad that sometimes the sewage falls on vehicles passing through the railway underpasses in the city.
The issue was recently highlighted by Mayor Gangambike Mallikarjun.