MALAPPURAM/KOCHI/T’PURAM : Uncertainty continues to surround Kerala’s proposed high-speed rail corridor with the Union government evading a definitive stand on the project even as E Sreedharan pressed ahead with its preliminary work by opening an office in Ponnani in Malappuram on Monday.
Addressing the media in New Delhi a day after the Union Budget, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw stopped short of offering clarity on the high-speed rail proposal led by Sreedharan. He, however, stressed that Kerala has been allocated Rs 3,795 crore for railway development in the current financial year, which he claimed was nearly 10 times the amount sanctioned during the UPA regime.
The minister said the investment would “double” Kerala’s railway capacity and allow “twice the number of trains to operate in the state”.
Referring to a recent meeting with the ‘Metroman’, Vaishnaw said they discussed the future of Indian Railways. The minister praised Sreedharan’s “grand vision” and technical expertise demonstrated in projects such as the Konkan Railway and the Delhi Metro.
When pressed on whether Kerala would actually get a high-speed rail corridor, the railway minister said Kerala would “eventually” receive such connectivity, without outlining a timeline or financial commitment.
‘Office will function as a public interface’
The lack of a clear assurance has deepened doubts, particularly as the budget included high-speed rail projects for cities such as Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Amaravati, while Kerala was conspicuously absent. Vaishnaw outlined several ongoing and proposed railway projects in the state, including completion of the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the Mangaluru-Shoranur fourth line, field surveys for the 106-km Shoranur-Ernakulam third line, and surveys for the Thiruvananthapuram-Nagercoil third line.
He said all procedures for the Sabari rail project have been completed, and also announced a new Thirunavaya-Guruvayur line. A fresh letter would be sent to the chief minister, urging faster land acquisition, including for the construction of 105-ft overbridges to improve passenger safety and connectivity, he added.
Even as the Centre remains non-committal, the proposed Thiruvananthapuram-Kannur high-speed rail corridor moved a step forward with Sreedharan inaugurating a Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) project office in Ponnani. The office will function as a public interface for the proposed project, he said.
“The initial phase will focus on public outreach along the proposed alignment, with meetings scheduled to begin on February 15,” Sreedharan told TNIE. He said expert teams will visit sites earmarked for stations, followed by field surveys to finalise the alignment. “We aim to complete the outdoor work before the monsoon. Once the monsoon starts, these activities become very difficult,” he said. He said the Railway Ministry’s approval would come only after submission of the DPR, which he aims to complete within six months.
“Approval can come in two weeks or take two years. That depends entirely on the ministry,” he said, underlining the uncertainty that continues to hang over Kerala’s high-speed rail ambitions.