THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Thursday submitted a memorandum to Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu highlighting the demands of the state. They include doubling works of Ernakulam-Kayamkulam section, installation of automatic signaling system, development of rail infrastructure for connecting Kannur airport with existing rail infrastructure, Vizhinjam International Seaport connectivity with Nemom and Nilambur-Nanjangud railway line.
He stated the funds required for railway works in the state for 2016-17 was Rs 602 crore. The state sought nine new trains and extension of trains to the state.
The new trains proposed are Nilambur-Trivandrum Rajyarani Express; ‘Bharat Tirth Train’ connecting Trivandrum, Madurai and Velankanni pilgrimage centres; Intercity Express from Trivandrum to Mangalore and tourist train from Kanyakumari to Goa covering Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Goa. He sought for Trivandrum-Nizamuddin Rajadhani Express; Kannur-Trivandrum via Kottayam; Thiruvananthapuram-Bilaspur and existing Hyderabad-Thiruvananthapuram trains to be made daily and a new pair of Thiruvananthapuram-Bengaluru trains. A dream project, Angamaly-Sabari Railway Line finds mention in the memorandum. Even though a budget is alloted for it each year, the sanctioned amount is not disbursed in time which causes delay in executing it, Chandy said.