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Indian Railway News

Started by sajiv, Jul 01, 2008, 08:56 PM

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sajiv

History of Indian Railway



History of Indian Railway began on 22 Dec 1851 when a goods train started. First passenger train started on 16 Apr 1953 between Mumbai and Thane. Thus for more than 150 years Indian Railway is serving us nicely. Since then Indian Railway had grown slowly and steadily. In 1952 Zonal system had been introduced in Railway with total Six Zones. With the development, it has reached to total 17 zones.

Current Status
In 17 zones, Indian railway is having more than 8700 passenger trains. It is covering all states except Sikkim. Indian Railway provides many suburban railway services in major cities like Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Delhi & Hyderabad. Railway is one of the most preferred transportation medium. A normal passenger train consists of eighteen coaches where 9 coaches are sleeper class; 3-5 are air-conditioned coaches. A normal passenger sleeper coach accommodates 60 to 72 passengers. Indian Railways makes 70% of its revenues and most of its profits from the freight sector. Indian Railways operates with 7,500 + Engines; 37,800 + passenger coaches and 222000 + wagons. There are 6,850 + stations and 700 + repair shops. Indian
Railway maintains total workforce of 15,40,000 largest employer in the world.

Railway - Lalu Prasad & Their achievements
Indian railway was running in losses since years. It had been taken as granted that this PSU can never be a profit making undertaking for Indian government. But Lalu Prasad Yadav has proven this wrong. He has presented figures where Indian Railway has made profit for year 2004-05. He has also presented 2006 budget with Rs 56,000 cr income and Rs 7000 Cr profit. Look at his amazing initiatives for Indian Railway

# e-ticketing and SMS booking of tickets
# Any holder of a wait-listed ticket can be allotted accommodation in a higher class with no extra charges.
# Tatkal tickets can be booked three days in advance and higher tatkal charges.
# Commercial use of Railway land for food, entertainment and other purpose.
# Surprise checking at railway stations for staff attendance, weights of consignments and etc.
# Name and number of Vigilance officers published in News papers for any complaints.

Believe me Lalu Prasad Yadav is a smart man and having capacity of working like a CEO of a company. It is the cast politics of Bihar which forced him to behave like a villager. This fact is acknowledged by IIM - A professor and students. They have noticed the turned around happened with Indian Railway. They visited Lalu Prasad and discussed the topic. They are going to add a case study on Indian Railway in their syllabus.

Challenge in front of Railway
I like to mention this in few lines only that's why I am giving main points only - Crime, Accidents, Ticket less Traveling, Underweight Fares of goods, Overcrowding at one place and empty railway at other place. Let's see how Lalu prasad yadav resolves this issues.

Trivia :
With 150 + years of history and 8700 + trains Indian Railway is full of Trivia. I collects few for you :
# Mumbai's suburban railway is the densest route in the world. It is attending 65 lakh passengers daily. The density of passengers in peak hours is 15 people per sq meter.
# The Fairy Queen is the oldest running locomotive in the world today.
# The shortest named station is Ib and the longest is Sri Venkatanarasimharajuvariapeta.
# Kharagpur railway station is the world's longest railway platform at 1072 m.
# The Himsagar Express (between Kanyakumari and Jammu Tawi) has the longest run 3745 km.
# The Bhopal Shatabdi Express is the fastest train in India a maximum speed of 140 km/h
# The Busiest railway Stations are as following with trains per day. Delhi + New Delhi 120, Lucknow 65, Ahmedabad 60
# Would you believe there is an official website of fans of Indian Railway : http://www.irfca.org

Indian Railway on World Map :
# Indian railway has 3 World Heritage Site - The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, The Nilgiri Mountain Railway & the Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus railway.
# ''The Palace on Wheels'' is world famous tourism train of Rajasthan which is loved by people across the globe.
# The Samjhauta Express & Thar Express running from India to Pakistan is also cherished by world.
# May 1974 Indian Railway Strike (appx 15 lakh people joined the strike) for 20 days is one of the worlds biggest strike till date. (Imagine a railway strike today like SBI strike, India may get chock up.)

:acumen

thiruvasagamani

Change in train timings



CHENNAI: From Tuesday (July 1), the departure timings of some trains, including those of Pandiyan Express to Madurai, Pearl City Express to Tuticorin and Nellai Express to Tirunelveli have been revised.

Following are the new departure timings with old timings in bracket:

Chennai Egmore – Kakinada Express – 5.20 p.m. (5.45 p.m.);

Chennai Egmore - Kanyakumari Express – 5.30 p.m. ( 5.25 p.m.) ;

Chennai Egmore – Puducheri Express – 6.10 p.m. (6 p.m.) ;

H.Nizamuddin – Madurai Tamilnadu Sampark Kranti Express/ H.Nizamuddin – Kanyakumari Thirukkural Weekly Express – 6.40 p.m. (7 p.m.);

Chennai Egmore – Nagercoil Weekly Express – 6.50 p.m. (7 p.m.);

Chennai Egmore – Trivandrum Ananathapuri Express – 7.05 p.m. (7.30 p.m.);

Chennai Egmore Tuticorin Pearl City Express – 7.30 p.m. (6.30 p.m.);

Howrah – Tiruchirapalli Bi-weekly/Kanyakumari Weekly Expresses – 8.25 p.m. (8.20 p.m.);

Chennai Egmore – Tirunelveli Nellai Express – 8.50 p.m. (9 p.m.);

Chennai Egmore – Madurai Pandiyan Express – 9.15 p.m. (9.30 p.m.);

and Chennai Egmore – Mangalore Express – 9.40 p.m. (10 p.m.);

Chennai Central – Vijayawada Pinakini Express – 2.05 p.m. (2 p.m.);


Chennai Central – Thiruvananthapuram Weekly Express – 3.15 p.m. (3.45 p.m.);

and Dhanbad/Tata – Allappurzha Express – Chennai Central 3.45 a.m. (3.55 p.m.),
according to a railway press release.
Thiruvasakamani Karnan


sajiv

#2
New Delhi: (IANS) Railways Minister Lalu Prasad Friday announced the introduction of 43 new trains, including four Garib Raths - air-conditioned trains for the poor - while presenting the interim railway budget for 2009-10 in the Lok Sabha.

1. Bilaspur-Tirunelveli via Thiruvananthapuram Express (Weekly)

2. Ranchi-Jaynagar Express (Tri-Weekly)

3. Secunderabad-Manuguru Superfast (Daily)

4. Mumbai-Karwar Superfast (Tri-weekly)

5. Bhopal-Lucknow Junction Garib Rath Express (Weekly)

6. Durg-Jaipur Express (Weekly)

7. Chhatrapati Sahu terminal (Kolhapur)-Dhanbad Link Service via Parasnath (Weekly)

8. Sengottai-Erode Passenger (Daily)

9. Dibrugarh Town-Chandigarh Express (Weekly)

10. Ajmer-Bhagalpur via Delhi Garib Rath Express (Bi-Weekly)

11. Nizamuddin-Bangalore via Kacheguda Rajdhani Express (Tri-weekly)

12. Barauni-Delhi Jan Sadharan Superfast (Bi-weekly)

13. Mumbai-Varanasi Superfast (Daily)

14. Mysore-Yesvantpur Express (Daily)

15. Jamalpur-Gaya Passenger

16. Korapur-Rourkela Express via Rayagada (Daily)

17. Agra-Ajmer Superfast (Daily)

18. Sitamarhi-Patna Link Service (Daily)

19. Tiruchirapalli-Madurai Express (Daily)

20. Mumbai-Bikaner Superfast (Bi-weekly)

21. Jaynagar-Ajmer Link Service (Bi-weekly)

22. Agra-Lucknow Junction Shatabdi Express (Daily)

23. Gandhidham-Kolkata Superfast (Weekly)

24. New Delhi-Guwahati Rajdhani Express via Bhagalpur (Weekly)

25. Mumbai-Tirunelveli Superfast via Thiruvananthapuram (Bi-weekly)

26. Jammu Tawi-Darbhanga Garib Rath Express (Weekly)

27. Saharsa-Delhi Express via Patna (Weekly)

28. Gwalior-Bhopal Intercity Express via Guna (Five days a week)

29. Coimbatore-Tuticorin Link Service (Daily)

30. Howrah-Haridwar Superfast (Five days a week)

31. Machhalipatnam-Mumbai Superfast (Bi-weekly)

32. Varanasi-Jammu Tawi Superfast (Daily)

33. Gorakhpur-Mumbai Superfast (Daily)

34. Jhajhar-Patna

35. New Delhi-Palwal

36. New Delhi-Guwahati Rajdhani Express via Muzaffarpur (Weekly)

37. Veraval-Mumbai Link Service (Daily)

38. Ranchi-Patna Jan Shatabdi (Daily)

39. Jhansi-Chhindwara Superfast (Bi-weekly)

40. Mumbai-Jodhpur Express (Weekly)

41. Hajipur-Bagaha Link Service

42. Howrah-Delhi Link Service via Azimganj-Bhagalpur (Weekly)

43. Sitamarhi-Delhi Garib Rath Express via Patna (Weekly)



sajiv



In Chennai Southern Railway will operate special trains from Madurai to Chennai Central and Chennai Central to Tiruchi to clear the rush.

According to a press release, the Madurai-Chennai Central special (via Tiruchi, Erode) will leave Madurai at 7-15 p.m. on August 17 and arrive at Chennai Central at 7-45 a.m. the next day. It will stop at Dindigul, Tiruchi, Karur, Erode, Salem, Jolarpettai, Katpadi and Arakkonam. Additional coaches will be attached from Tiruchi.

The Chennai-Central Tiruchi special (via Erode) will leave Chennai Central at 10-20 p.m. on August 18 and reach Tiruchi at 7-30 a.m. the next day. It will stop at Arakkonam, Katpadi, Jolarpettai, Salem, Erode and Karur. Reservation will commence on August 16

:acumen

vivek

Thank you - Nice information

http://www.indiantrains.org/

I have not seen such a good site which has so many features in a single page . The better way to search Indian trains looks great and it open fast, no pop-up, user friendly. every information in a single page . this concept is good and some of the features like calendar, train running day has not come in a single website in this reviews. the most important features i have seen in this site that if the user does not know the station code then also he can see all the trains and it is only website which have a drop menu box for the important station from where you can choose the station name and also it has a date calendar from you can choose the date and it show the running day of the train so that you can know which day of the week this train is running. the other most important feature i have seen in this website that it show the train which does not have the reservation coach for the benefit of the user and they are showing the passenger train also which is also not available in any website.

Cons: Unofficial

Pros: all the features which user need, open fast, user friendly, good look and interactive, update data regularly, new features

Star received:  5


ganeshbala

Indian Railways PNR Status Enquiry

There are many people who keep searching for Indian Railways PNR Status Enquiry for their tickets and also keep looking for toll free numbers where they can get passenger information, train information and other details related to their travel by phone or sending SMS or by website.

There are various ways to get Indian Railways PNR status:

   1. Indian Railways department has phone number for Enquiry, which is a completely free service and works all over India including small villages and towns. You just need to call '139′ from your BSNL landlines, MTNL landlines, Dolphin, Garuda, Idea, Spice Telecom and Vodaphone telecom operator enabled phones and get access to SMS, call back and fax facility.

      For Delhi and Mumbai residents another advantage is that you can just dial 139xxxxxxxxxx [10 digit ticket PNR number] and 139xxxx[4 digit train number] and get the train ticket PNR and train status instantly.

   2. Indian railway Ticket PNR status can be fetched by sending SMS:
      "PNR <Yr 10 digit PNR number>" to 5888 or 57886 or 5676747

   3. The status can be checked from official website of Indian Railways. Just put 10 digit PNR no into text field and click on Get PNR status button.

For more details on Indian Railways PNR status enquiry please visit offcial Indian Railways website.

Note: Online PNR Status Enquiry Service for Indian Railways is available from 0400 hrs IST to 2330 hrs IST.

vivek

#8
To check the PNR status visit

[iframe=1024,700]http://www.indiantrains.org/pnr-enquiry/[/iframe]


sajiv


Special trains on October 5 and 6

CHENNAI:
Southern Railway will run three special trains on October 5 and 6 to clear the rush. Reservation will begin on October 4.
The Madurai–Chennai Egmore special (train No. 0682) will leave Madurai at 7:30 pm on October 5 and arrive in Chennai Egmore at 8 a.m. the next day. It will stop at Dindigul, Tiruchi, Srirangam, Ariyalur, Vriddhachalam, Villupuram, Tindivanam, Melmaruvathur, Chengalpattu, Tambaram and Mambalam. The Tiruchi–Chennai Egmore special (No.0653) will leave Tiruchi at 8:15 p.m. on October 5 and arrive at Chennai Egmore at 3:15 a.m. the next day.

The Chennai Egmore-Tiruchi special (No.0681) will leave Chennai Egmore at 11:15 p.m. on October 6 and arrive at Tiruchi at 6:15 a.m. the next day.

:acumen

sajiv

#11
Train movement hit due to collision

LUCKNOW: The collision of two goods trains between Bhaupur and Panki near Kanpur on Sunday affected the movement of trains on Delhi-Allahabad route. The collision severely hit the train services as many trains were either cancelled, short-terminated or diverted through other routes. This aggravated the plight of passengers who were already having a tough time boarding trains running behind schedule due to heavy fog.

The passengers at Lucknow station were not untouched of the inconvenience. Gomti express was cancelled and its passengers were adjusted in Shaheed Express. Similarly, Kaifiyat Express was terminated at Lucknow and its passengers were accommodated in Poorva Express.

dwarakesh

Deepavali trains get full in 1 hr

The demand for train tickets for Deepavali season is so high that the special trains announced by Southern Railway have been booked within an hour after the reservation counters opened for business on Sunday.

Though the reservation counters functioned only for half a day, trains to Nagercoil, Tirunelveli, Tuticorin and Madurai were fully booked till waitlist by 8.30 am.

The most popular trains were those for Tirunelveli and Tuticorin scheduled for October 24 and 25. Tickets are not available anymore for sleeper class, while reservations of AC two-tier in Tirunelveli Express have touched waitlist 45 and reservations of AC three-tier in Tuticorin Express has touched waitlist 51.

With Deepavali festival falling on October 27, passengers have booked tickets on special trains that are scheduled to depart on October 24, 25 and 26. The demand is less for the trains that depart on 26th and 27th.

Southern Railway announced seven special trains out of Chennai and opened bookings on Sunday.

Passengers who were not fortunate enough to get tickets demanded that the railways introduce more special trains to Nagercoil, Tirunelveli and Tuticorin. The passenger flow to these southern towns have increased tremendously during festival holidays in the last two years.

Tatkal scheme will be the only hope for the passengers who could not get confirmed tickets. But, that too is expected to be sold out the moment bookings open six days before the date of departure of the trains," a senior railway official said.

sajiv


Smile Train brings smile to Mizo cleft-lips children

A US charity, the Smile Train, has chucked in to bring beautiful smiles to children with cleft lips and palates in Mizoram.The Smile Train has selected the well-equipped Greenwood Hospital in Aizawl as its Mizoram centre for the operation which is free of cost.The second operation started from today to which as many as 30 children with cleft lips and palates have enrolled."We will operate on four patients today, and we are not sure whether or not we could operate on all the enrolled patients as the operation will last only till the next three days," a Greenwood Hospital official told UNI here today.He added that 11 children have successfully been operated upon during the first operation September 8-11 last.

Dr Lalbuatsaiha Ralte, medical director of the Greenwood Hospital, said, "We organise this programme to bring beautiful smile to children with cleft lips and palates, to rescue them from shyness, inferiority complex and mockery they have due to their physical abnormality," Dr Ralte said his hospital had been selected by The Smile Train after thorough inspection for three times.

This time, renowned plastic surgeon Prof Sashanka Chatterjee and his team, are operating on the patients. Headquartered in New York, The Smile Train is an international charity helping children with cleft lips and palates, founded in 2000 by Brian Mullaney and Charles Wang. It has performed over the last eight years, more than 280,000 cleft surgeries in 75 of the world's poorest countries, raising some $84 million last year while employing a worldwide staff of just 30 people.Northeast region is found to have the highest number of cases of cleft-lips and palates in India. Mizoram is the fifth The Smile Train centre in the NE, after Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur and Tripura.

:acumen

sajiv


Southern Railway records 21% growth in freight traffic

CHENNAI: Southern Railway has achieved 21 per cent growth in freight traffic in the first half of the current financial year compared to the same period last year.Freight loading from April to September this year stood at 16.8 million tonnes which was 9 per cent more than the target of 15.46 million tonnes fixed up by the Railway Board for the zone.If the current trend of loading continued, the zone would achieve this year's target of 32.5 million tonnes.

Loading had improved in all commodities with the exception of petroleum products. As against the movement of 2.28 million tonnes in the first half of last year, this year 2.19 million tonnes of petroleum products were moved.The fall in the movement, according to Southern Railway Chief Public Relations Officer Neenu Ittyerah, was primarily due to shut down of the CPCL refinery at Manali here.However, loading of petroleum products from Cochin refinery, which is in Trivandrum Division was up by 25 per cent

All divisions in the zone had achieved higher growth in different commodities with Palakad and Madurai divisions achieving 300 per cent and 200 per cent growth respectively in coal loading. The movement of coal from Mangalore Port to power houses in Andhra Pradesh contributed to this increase. Coal was also moved from Tuticorin Port to new steel plant at Salem.Total movement of coal in the first half was 8.8 million tonnes as against 7.3 million tonnes during the same period last year.The marketed traffic of steel from Salem Division crossed one lakh tonnes for the first time.

Cement movement: Cement movement recorded 2.19 million tonnes as against 1.46 million tonnes in the previous year. Tiruchi division had shown 90 per cent increase in cement loading from various parts of the State.Loading in Chennai division had shown a 9 per cent increase in coal and a 13 per cent increase in container traffic.

Movement of other commodities are as follows: Fertiliser movement 1.16 million tonnes (1.10 million tonnes); Food grains 57,000 tonnes (40,000 tonnes); containers 71,000 tonnes (65,000 tonnes) and others 1.11 million tonnes (75,000 tonnes).

:acumen

sajiv

Expo on Indian Railways - A big draw

THRILLED: A view of a toy rail at the exhibition at Railway Institute, Ponmalai, Tiruchi on Tuesday.

TIRUCHI: Thousands of persons, mostly school children, could get a peep into the past of the Indian Railways on Tuesday by visiting the 'entry free' exhibition of 25 years of collection of toy trains, railway related stamps, coins and currencies put up by R. Syed Abdul Jalal, Senior Section Engineer – Progress on the Railway Institute premises.



Students from schools in Kattur, Kalkandarkottai, Ponmalaipatti, Kotapattu and TVS Toll Gate were invited to the exhibition in which 1,500 stamps of railways in different parts of the world, heritage books, old time tables, commemorative coins, heritage model railway engines, and 350 kinds of toy trains were put up for display.Students, said Mr. Syed, were enamoured by his collections made over 25 years. The public who had come to visit the Railway Workshop that was kept open in connection with the Ayutha Pooja also turned up to the exhibition in large numbers.

They spent time watching the remote-controlled working models and electronic models of the toy trains. Chief Workshop Manager, Railway Workshops, Golden Rock, S. Rengarajan inaugurated the exhibition in the presence of other senior officials.Mr. Syed said he was eager to exhibit his collections free of cost in connection with the Children's Day celebrations. The organisers only have to arrange for the venue and transport. Mr. Syed could be contacted at 94441 87036.

:acumen

sajiv


Rail ticket booking through post office soon

Chandigarh: Railway ticket booking would soon be possible through post offices in Punjab and Chandigarh as the Postal Department has identified several locations for starting this service in the State and the Union Territory."We are just awaiting the approval of the Railway Board for commencing ticket booking through postal network in Punjab and Chandigarh. It will be introduced at select locations," Chief Post Master General (Punjab and Chandigarh) Prithvi Raj Kumar said here on Thursday.

The department has identified six locations in Punjab, including Ludhiana, Patiala, Hoshiarpur and Amritsar, for starting the service. In Chandigarh, the department is hoping to introduce the service at four places.

:acumen

sajiv

Trains regulated

MADURAI:
Two trains are to be regulated in the Madurai Division of Southern Railway on October 12, Sunday, in order to facilitate sub-way work between Tirumangalam and Kalligudi.According to a Southern Railway press release, 384 Coimbatore-Nagercoil passenger will be regulated at Madurai from 2.45 p.m. to 5 p.m.

The 788 Shencottah-Madurai passenger will be regulated at Virudhunagar from 2.50 p.m. to 5 p.m.

:agree

indianacumen


sajiv


Railway facility - Reader's Mail

Chennai-Coimbatore Cheran Express
should be extended up to Mettupalayam. Electrification of the Coimbatore-Mettupalayam section and laying of the Mettupalayam-Chamrajnagar line should be done immediately. Senior citizens get a concession of 30 per cent in train travel. The concession should be extended to surcharge and reservation and berth charges. One more Express train should be introduced from Mettupalayam to Chennai under the name ‘Marina Express’. Incidentally, Mettupalayam railway station is 100 years old.
B.A. Vadooth, Mettupalayam.

Warning motorists: This is with reference to the report ‘Yellow circles on city roads’ to caution motorists and others. This is a good idea. I suggest that yellow circles be for the accident survivors and red circles for those who lost lives in accidents.
A. Vellingiri, Coimbatore. Omni buses

Recently the transport department conducted surprise checks in omni buses to detect tax evasion. Motor Vehicles Act permits omni buses to carry passengers with only accompanied luggage. But most of the omni buses carry motor pumps, huge stationery, utensils and other heavy commodities in violation of the Act. Loading and unloading of goods cause delay and passengers have to suffer a lot of inconvenience. The transport department should strictly check not only tax evasion but other offences too.
M.V. Namby, Coimbatore.

Coin shortage
Erode is facing acute coin shortage. There is scarcity of one rupee coin everywhere in the town. It is not easy to get balance from hotels, shops or bus conductors unless we pay them one or two one-rupee coins. Some hotels and shops have displayed boards that coins will be purchased on payment of commission. Before the situation becomes worse, banks should rush to the rescue of the public and release sufficient quantity of coins of smaller denomination for circulation.
Radha Bhaskaran, Erode. Enforce ban

Ayudha Puja was celebrated by traders and business communities in a grand way. As part of the celebration, pumpkins were broken on the roads, despite a ban on that to avert accidents. It is not enough to enact a law, it should be enforced too. Otherwise, the very purpose of enacting a law will be defeated.
C. Bhaskaran, Erode.

:acumen

NAREN

Good information...

If possible post the Train schedule(time table) and available

:agree


Thanks for the Post
nice games here

sajiv


Special Trains

CHENNAI:
Southern Railway will run special trains to Madurai and Tuticorin.No. 0633 Chennai Egmore-Madurai Special will leave at 11.45 p.m. on October 14 and reach Madurai at 9.30 a.m. the next day.

0619 Egmore-Tuticorin Special will leave at 11.45 p.m. on October 16 and reach Tuticorin at 12.15 p.m. the next day. 0620 will leave Tuticorin at 2.45 p.m. on October 17 and reach Egmore at 4.30 a.m.

:acumen

sajiv

Special trains to clear festival rush

Coimbatore: In order to clear the rush of passengers owing to the festival season, the Southern Railway has announced operation of special trains on the Coimbatore – Chennai – Coimbatore sector.

A release from the Southern Railway, Salem division, said that train number 0622 will leave Coimbatore on October 14, 21 and 28 and train number 0621 will leave Chennai on October 15, 22 and 29. Train number 0622 will leave Coimbatore at 11.45 p.m. and reach Chennai Central at 8.30 a.m. the next day.

It will stop at Tirupur, Erode, Salem, Jolarpettai, Katpadi, Arakkonam, Perambur and Chennai Central. Train number 0621 will leave Chennai Central at 11.45 p.m. and reach Coimbatore at 7.45 a.m.It will have stops at Arakkonam, Katpadi, Jolarpettai, Salem, Erode, Tirupur, Coimbatore North and Coimbatore.

:acumen

dwarakesh

Special trains

Southern Railway will run the following special trains.

Chennai Egmore-Tirunelveli specials: Train No.0607 will leave Egmore at 6.40 p.m. on October 20 and reach Tirunelveli at 6.30 a.m. the next day. Train No.0608 will leave Tirunelveli at 9.15 p.m. on October 21 and arrive at Egmore at 10.15 a.m. the next day. Chennai Egmore-Tuticorin specials: Train No.0635 will leave Egmore at 8.25 p.m. on October 22 and reach Tuticorin at 9.45 a.m. the next day. Train No.0636 will leave Tuticorin at 2.45 p.m. on October 23 and arrive at Egmore at 4.30 a.m. the next day.

Chennai Central-Coimbatore Superfast specials: Train No. 0601 will leave Central at 11.45 p.m. on October 23 and reach Coimbatore at 7.45 a.m. the next day. Train No. 0602 will leave Coimbatore at 9.30 a.m. on October 24 and arrive at Central at 5 p.m. Reservation will commence on October 15.

sajiv


Hubli train to terminate at Yeshwanthpur

HUBLI: South Western Railway has decided to terminate the Hubli-Bangalore tri-weekly special train at Yeshwanthpur instead of Bangalore city station with effect from November 5, according to a release.The Bangalore-Hubli tri-weekly special train will start from Yeshwanthpur station instead of Bangalore city station with effect from November 6.

The Hubli-Yeshwanthpur tri-weekly special train will leave Hubli at 10.20 p.m. on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday and reach Yeshwanthpur at 6.45 a.m. the next day.In the return direction, the Yeshwanthpur-Hubli tri-weekly special train will leave Yeshwanthpur at 10.10 p.m. on Thursday, Saturday and Monday and reach Hubli at 7.25 a.m. the next day.


sajiv

Special train to Bangalore

TIRUCHI: Southern Railway will operate a special train from Tiruchi to Bangalore on October 22. The special train (No. 0641) will leave Tiruchi at 10.30 p.m. and reach Bangalore city at 8.30 a.m., the next day.The train will stop at Karur, Erode, Salem, Omalur, Dharmapuri, Hosur and Bangalore Cantonment.

It will run with one AC 2-tier, one AC 3-tier, eight sleeper class, five general second class and two second class cum luggage van coaches. Advance reservation for the train will commence from October 18 onwards, a Southern Railway press release here said.



sajiv

SCR to run special trains

HYDERABAD: South Central Railway has announced 29 more special trains from Monday to December 28 to clear extra rush of passengers.

A railway press release said Secunderabad-Rajahmundry special train (714) is being extended by nine more trips to run from Secunderabad at 9.45 p.m. on November 1, 8, 15, 22, 29, December 6, 13, 20, 27 and reach Rajahmundry at 6.45 a.m. the next day.

Vijayawada-Secunderabad special train (713) will run ten additional trips.The train would depart from Vijayawada at 9.30 p.m. on October 29, November 2, 9, 16, 23, 30, December 7, 14, 21, 28 and arrive at Secunderabad at 4.30 a.m. the next day.

Secunderabad-Kakinada Town special train (700) will depart from Secunderabad at 8.30 p.m. on October 27, 31 and arrive in Kakinada at 6.10 a.m. the next day.On its return trip, it would depart from Kakinada at 10.25 p.m. on October 29 and November 1 and reach the city at 8.10 a.m. the next day.

Hyderabad-Dadar Deepavali special train (732) will depart from Hyderabad at 10 p.m. on October 27, 29 and 31 and arrive in Dadar at 3.30 p.m. the next day.On its return journey, it (731) would depart from Dadar at 4.50 p.m. on October 28, 30 and November 1 to reach Hyderabad at 10 a.m. the next day.



sajiv

Metro rail: relief plan for the affected

50-60 acres of government land earmarked and frozen for the purpose Compensation could be land to land or 100 p.c. for the poor and weaker sections It could also be 50 p.c. relief with structural compensation award of GHMC

HYDERABAD: Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMR), the government's special purpose vehicle to oversee construction of the elevated project, is readying a relief and rehabilitation plan for owners of affected private properties on the three routes.

The compensation could even be land to land or 100 per cent for the poor and weaker sections as also those losing their entire livelihood. Alternatively, it could be 50 per cent compensation and the regular structural compensation award given by GHMC.

"Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy was very clear about total rehabilitation of poor people.

We have earmarked and frozen 50-60 acres of government land for the purpose so that residences can be built very near to the sites where their original plots are," explained HMR Managing Director N.V.S. Reddy.

The extent of land delineated for rehabilitation could be more while the project begins to shape up as HMR was holding negotiations with various government agencies.

The area would be over and above the 269 acres spread over 33 select stations and three depots to be given to Maytas, the BOT developer, for real estate development but would be outside the domain of the latter.The government has already made it clear that the 269 acres would be only for renting out and not to sell during the concession period of 35 years."We are not giving them an extra inch of land other than what is there in the agreement.Maytas can develop up to 18.5 million sq.ft. of property space - 12.5 million sq.ft. over depots and six million sq.ft over stations being built over government land," affirmed Mr. Reddy.

About 1,355 properties, both government and private are going to be affected across the three corridors – Miyapur to L.B.Nagar (Line 1), Jubilee Bus Station to Falaknuma (Line 2) and Nagole to Shilparamam (Line 3), for alignments, curves, bends and stations.Private properties alone constitute a vast majority totalling to 1,266 structures, hence the compensation package.


sajiv

Railway panel for better deal to Vizag
Waltair division contributes a major share of revenue after Mumbai: Nandi Yellaiah
He wants Railways to run more trains from the division to Chennai, Hyderabad and New Delhi

Merge Waltair Division with the South Central Railway, he says


VISAKHAPATNAM:
Member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Railways Nandi Yellaiah wanted a better deal to Visakhapatnam corresponding to the revenue it is generating and its importance as a fast growing industrial city.

Out of the 67 Railway Divisions, Waltair is contributing a major share of revenue after Mumbai.

Visakhapatnam has many large industries and many more are coming up. But due to lack of sufficient number of trains and with trains being extended to Bhubaneswar or diverted without touching the Visakhapatnam Railway Station, the city's development is not as fast as it should be, Mr. Yellaiah said in a representation made to Railway Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav on Thursday.

"Since Waltair Division is under East Coast Railway, it has been neglected by the railway officials. Introduction of Garib Rath after a long delay and only after much public outcry, even though it is announced much earlier, is the best example. It shows the callous attitude and gross negligence meted out to Waltair Division by the East Coast Railway authorities. Extending trains originating from Visakhapatnam to Bhubaneswar is uncalled for", Mr. Yellaiah said.

MP's suggestions: He also wanted the Railways to run more trains from here to Chennai, Hyderabad and New Delhi as there is a huge demand for these trains.

To ensure justice to Waltair Division and Visakhapatnam railway station, Mr. Yellaiah wanted the Railway Minister to merge Waltair Division with the South Central Railway; in the place of Link/Dakshin express from Visakhapatnam to Hazrat Nizamuddin (Delhi) a direct train with a new name should be run so that the long wait in between to get the train linked up with link trains from other places is avoided and the train should start at 8 p.m. from here; a daily super-fast train to New Delhi similar to Tamil Nadu express must be introduced; a Rajadhani express from Hyderabad to New Delhi via Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam and Raipur must be introduced so that people of entire AP are benefited; the tri-weekly Samata Express from Visakhapatnam to Hazrat Nizamuddin via Raipur and the twice-a-week Swarna Jayanti Express via Vijayawada must be made daily trains; the Purushottam Express between Delhi and Bhubaneswar must be extended to Visakhapatnam to provide a direct train from here to Varanasi; overnight trains to Chennai and Hyderabad should be run to meet the huge demand for such trains and passenger trains starting at midnight at Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada be introduced between the two stations to cater to the needs of people.


sajiv

Train rescheduled

Bangalore City–Darbhanga Bhagmathi Express (train no 2578), scheduled to leave Bangalore City at 9 a.m. on Friday, has been rescheduled and will leave at 2.45 p.m. the same day. This is due to the late running of its pairing train, Darbhanga-Bangalore City Express (train no 2577). The train was scheduled to arrive at 8.40 p.m. on Thursday, but will arrive at 7 a.m. on Friday, a South Western Railway press release said.

:agree


sajiv

Halt for trains

Thiruvananthapuram: Two long-distance express trains will halt at Karunagapally from November 1. They are the Kanyakumari-Mumbai Jayanti Janata Express and the Hyderabad-Thiruvananthapuram Sabari Express. It is as a result of talks held by Food Minister C. Divakaran with Railway Minister Lalu Prasad during the latter's visit to Kerala.

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Relief for the rain-hit

Thiruvananthapuram: The government has sanctioned Rs.8.23 crore for rain relief works. Revenue Minister K.P. Rajendran said here on Thursday that it would be used for providing assistance to the dependants of the dead, those who lost crops, those whose houses were damaged, rehabilitation of the affected people and repair of roads and bunds in various districts. He asked the District Collectors to provide relief to the affected at the earliest.

:acumen


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Trains cancelled

BHUBANESWAR:
The 2816 New Delhi-Bhubaneswar Neelachal Express scheduled to leave New Delhi on Thursday was cancelled from New Delhi.

Similarly, 2815 Puri-New Delhi Neelachal Express scheduled to leave Puri on October 25 would remain cancelled due to non-arrival of corresponding train from New Delhi, East Coast Railway said here on Thursday. Moreover, the 2801 Puri-New Delhi Purusottam Express scheduled to leave Puri on October 24 was also cancelled.




sajiv

'The Smile Train' in Kolkata

Kolkata: Cleft lip and cleft palate is a correctable birth defect but due to lack of awareness, people born with this deformity are subjected to humiliation and social rejection, said Brian Mullaney, founder-president of the New York-based charitable foundation 'The Smile Train,' here on Wednesday.

'The Smile Train' is a leading international cleft charity foundation sponsoring corrective surgery for people born with cleft lip and palate in 75 countries from the developing world.In the State, the foundation has tied up with seven institutions for free surgery for such patients. The Institute of Child Health (ICH) in the city is one of them.

"Under this programme, all expenses for surgery, medicines and post-operative care are being taken care by the foundation. Since most of the patients are poor, parents are also given monetary allowances for post-operative care," said Parthapratim Gupta, project director at ICH for 'The Smile Train.'


dwarakesh

Special trains to Nagercoil, Madurai

CHENNAI: Southern Railway will run following additional Deepavali special trains for the convenience of passengers.

Chennai Egmore - Nagercoil Specials: Train No. 0605 will leave Egmore at 6.40 p.m. on October 28 and reach Nagercoil at 8.15 a.m. the next day. Train No. 0606 will leave Nagercoil at 1.30 p.m. on October 29 and arrive Egmore at 4.30 a.m. the next day.

Chennai Egmore - Madurai Special: Train No. 0639 will leave Egmore at 2 p.m. on October 25 and reach Madurai at 10.45 p.m. on the same day.

Reservation for the trains will commence on October 25, according to a Railway release.

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Special trains

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Railways will operate special services from Kochuveli to Yesvantpur on October 27 and 29 to clear the rush of passengers proceeding to Bangalore. The 0678 Kochuveli-Yesvantpur special will depart from Kochuveli at 8 p.m. on October 27 and 29 to reach Yesvantpur at 11.30 a.m. the next day

:acumen

dwarakesh

A/C railway waiting hall, a big hit

TIRUCHI: Tiruchi Railway Junction has been beautified and expanded to accommodate the growing number of rail travellers.

Of the various new facilities created at the junction in the recent past, the 'pay and use' air-conditioned waiting hall located on platform 1 for the benefit of passengers of all classes has proved a big hit with the travelling public.

This facility has been created for the first time in any railway station falling within Southern Railway limits, say railway officials here. Till now, only upper class passengers enjoyed the air-conditioned waiting hall facility in major railway stations. Passengers travelling in other classes had to be satisfied with the common non air-conditioned waiting hall at stations. In keeping with the declaration of 2007 and 2008 as 'passenger amenity years', the Tiruchi Railway Division established the 'pay and use' air-conditioned waiting hall at Tiruchi Junction at a cost of Rs. 11 lakh for the benefit of passengers travelling by any class charging a nominal amount for it usage.

dwarakesh

Salem - Chennai Egmore Superfast Express

SALEM: The timings of Train No 2297/2298 Salem - Chennai Egmore Superfast Express will be changed from November 1. It will now leave Egmore at 11.20 p.m. and arrive at Salem 6.05 a.m. On return,it will leave Salem at 9 p.m. and reach Egmore at 4.50 a.m. The train will be in ordinary category now and fare will also be reduced.

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CHENNAI: Southern Railway will run a special train from Chennai Egmore to Rameswaram via Madurai to clear the rush.

Train No. 0603 will leave Egmore at 3.40 p.m. on October 31 and reach Rameswaram at 4.45 a.m. the next day. Reservation is available, stated a Southern Railway release.

Chennai Egmore – Trivandrum Special via Tiruchirapalli, Madurai and Nagercoil: Train no 0659 will leave Egmore at 9.30 am on November 1 and reach Trivandrum at 2 a.m., the next day.

Chennai Egmore – Nagercoil Specials: Train no 0611 will leave Egmore at 6.40 pm on November 1 and reach Nagercoil at 8.15 a.m., the next day and train no 0637 will leave Egmore at 8.25 p.m. on November 2 and reach Nagercoil at 11 a.m., the next day. In the return direction train no 0612 and 0638 will leave Nagercoil at 8.10 p.m. on November 2 and November 3 respectively and arrive Egmore at 10.15 a.m., the next day.

Reservation is available for these trains from October 31, the release said.

Source: The Hindu

sajiv

Superfast Special train to clear rush

NEW DELHI: To clear extra rush of passengers, Northern Railway will run a “Superfast Special” train from Varanasi to Hazrat Nizamuddin. This train will depart from Varanasi on November 1 at 4-45 p.m. and reach Hazrat Nizamuddin at 6-55 a.m. the next day.


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World class amenities at railway station stressed

VISAKHAPATNAM: For a fast growing city like Visakhapatnam, described as 'a jewel on the coramandel coast', infrastructure and other facilities available at the Visakhapatnam railway station are woefully inadequate and the need of the hour is to plan and develop it as 'world class station' keeping in mind the requirements needed in next two decades. According to senior officials, the snail's pace of development witnessed at present failed to meet the demand. In terms of revenue, of the 67 railway divisions, Waltair Division is the second largest revenue earner and it deserves a special status.

Senior officials point out to the exponential growth and the new avenues that would be required. The sub-urban traffic is expected to increase by leaps and bounds. Because of the economic boom that would be witnessed after development of coastal corridor, new urban areas and satellite towns would emerge. There would be great demand for sub-urban trains.

Other facilities: As of now there are only a few EMUs and DMUs (electrical multiple units and diesel multiple units) running between Visakhapatnam-Kakinada and Visakhapatnam-Rayagada, which are always over crowded, an indication that more such services are required.

According to officials, the stations at Simhachalam, Duvvada, Pendurthi, Kottavalasa besides, Visakhapatnam require immediate up-gradation and improved amenities for commuters. Improvement of line capacity between Visakhapatnam and Gopalapatnam is another immediate necessity. Because of single line, the journey between Duvvada and Visakhapatnam, a distance of just 20 km, always irritates commuters. A world class station would have facilities like hotels, kiosks, escalators, internet facilities, book stalls, cabs, travel guides for site seeing. These can be provided at Visakhapatnam station with proper planning. According officials, it would not require huge amounts. At places like Puchaladibba (20 acres), and loco sidings (15 acres) in Visakhapatnam, sufficient land is also available for development.

People in these parts have a feeling that Visakhapatnam is subjected to discriminatory treatment because it is under ECoR. Member of Parliamentary Committee on Railways, Nandi Yellaiah echoed these feelings and said that it only showed the callous attitude and gross negligence meted out to Waltair Division. He demanded more trains from Visakhapatnam to Chennai, New Delhi and Hyderabad and a Rajdhani Express from Hyderabad to New Delhi touching Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam.


dwarakesh

Inter-city train between Coimbatore, Kochi demanded

Tirupur: K. Subbarayan, MP, has asked the Railway Ministry to include Coimbatore and Tirupur in the diligent exercise of infrastructure development and connectivity considering the prominence of the region in the global industrial map.

Mr. Subbarayan told The Hindu that a representation had been submitted to introduce a daily inter-city express from Coimbatore to Kochi during day hours.

Similarly, a railway link between Tirupur and Karur through Kangayam and Vellakoil should be established to reduce travelling time between Tirupur and the port city of Tuticorin.

Considering the enormous growth in employment in the textile sector, new hourly shuttle services connecting Erode, Palakkad and Mettupalayam with Coimbatore should be operated for the benefit of migrant labourers coming from the peripheral regions.

Mr. Subbarayan said an appeal had been made to construct a road overbridge across the railway crossing situated along the national highway connecting Coimbatore with Dindigul at Eachanari, to ease the traffic congestion during the closure of gate. Similarly, facilities at Coimbatore railway station should be improved by extending platforms and setting up special ticket counters, additional waiting rooms, more subways and refreshment rooms.

dwarakesh

Special trains

CHENNAI: Southern Railway will run special trains to Nagercoil and Coimbatore.

Chennai Egmore - Nagercoil Specials: Train No. 0619 will leave Egmore at 11.45 p.m. on November 7, 9, and 14 and reach Nagercoil at 2.30 p.m., the next day. Train No. 0620 will leave Nagercoil at 8.10 p.m., on November 8, 10, and 15 and arrive Egmore at 10.15 a.m., the next day.

Chennai Central - Coimbatore Specials: Train No. 0675 will leave Central at 10.20 p.m., on November 7 and reach Coimbatore at 7 a.m. the next day. Train No. 0676 will leave Coimbatore at 11.45 p.m., on November 9 and arrive Central at 8.30 a.m., the next day.

Reservation will commence on November 1, a Southern Railway release said.

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Special trains on Monday

MADURAI: Southern Railway will operate four additional passenger specials from Tiruchendur and two from Tirunelveli on November 3 for the convenience of pilgrims visiting the Subramaniaswamy Temple for Kanda Sashti festival.

According to a press release, passenger special 1 will leave Tiruchendur at 9.40 a.m. and reach Tirunelveli at 11.25 a.m.

Passenger special 2 will leave Tiruchendur at 4.15 p.m. and reach Tirunelveli at 5.45 p.m. Passenger special 3 will leave Tiruchendur at 8.30 p.m. and reach Tirunelveli at 10.20 p.m. Passenger special 4 will leave Tiruchendur at 10.05 p.m. and reach Tirunelveli at 11.40 p.m.
Passenger special 1 will leave Tirunelveli at 9.30 a.m. and reach Tiruchendur at 11.15 a.m. Passenger special 2 will leave 1 p.m. and reach Tiruchendur at 2.45 p.m.

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Train service from Rameswaram to Chennai to be flagged off today

RAMANATHAPURAM: The people of Ramanathapuram and Sivaganga districts heaved a sigh of relief following the introduction of additional direct train service from Rameswaram to Chennai, which is to be flagged off on Saturday.

Passengers who faced inconvenience with the timings of the the existing Sethu Express would reach Chennai early .

According to N. Venugopal, Senior Public Information Officer, Southern Railway, Madurai, Train No 6102 Rameswaram-Chennai Egmore express will leave Rameswaram at 5 p.m. and reach Egmore at 6.40 a.m.

It will come to Ramanathapuram at 6.15 p.m.

It reaches Sivaganga and Karaikudi at 10.20 p.m. and 11.20 p.m. respectively.

In the return direction, the train No 6101 Chennai Egmore-Rameswaram express will leave Egmore at 7.55 p.m. and reach Rameswaram at 9 a.m. the next day.

It will stop at Karaikudi and Sivaganga at 4.20 a.m. and 5.20 a.m.

It will reach Ramanathapuram at 7.15 a.m.

The train will stop at Mandapam, Ramanathapuram, Paramakudi, Manamadurai, Sivaganga, Devakotta road, Karaikudi, Chettinad, Pudukottai, Tiruchi, Villupuram, Melmaruvathur, Chengalpattu and Tambaram.

While welcoming the additional train to Chennai, S. Nallamuthu, Area Commander, Home Guard, said the timings would satisfy most of the passengers of Ramanathapuram and Sivaganga districts.

M. Dhanabalan, president, Chamber of Commerce, Ramanathapuram district said the Southern Railway should consider the demand of operating a train to Coimbatore, which had been stopped in view of broad gauge work in Pollachi region, via Tiruchi or Erode.

Source: The Hindu

sajiv

New rail line fires Wayanad's hopes

KALPETTA:
The newly-opened Nanjangud-Chamarajnagar broad gauge line in Karnataka kindles the hopes of the people of Wayanad.The proximity and geographical features are the positive factors in favour of establishing a railway link between Nanjangud and the hilly district of Wayanad. Since Wayanad is a part of the Deccan plateau, there would not be any steep inclines or hair-pin turnings in the line.

Moreover, the Nanjangud railway station is only 70 km away from the district border, K.P. Thomas, chairman of the Nilambur-Nanjangud railway action council
The demand for the Nilambur-Nanjangud railway line is more than 100 years old. The first proposal for this line was presented in the budget of the People's Council of Mysore in 1881.After that, various surveys had been conducted but to no avail. As per the preliminary survey of the Railway Ministry, which was held around three years ago, the total expenditure of the proposed railway from Nanjangud to Nilambur was estimated at Rs.1,742.109 crore.

But this proposal was cancelled later on the grounds that this line would not be profitable and the project required special permission of the Union Ministry of Forest and Environment.K.J. Devassya, general secretary of the action council, alleged that a lobby working for the Coimbatore-Chamarajnagar railway line was jeopardising the efforts for the Nilambur-Nanjangud railway line.

If the railway line came into being, more than 200 km could be saved along the Kochi-Bangalore route, he said.The proposed railway line passes through Yechagundal, Hura, Yeswanthapura, Chikka Birring and Mavinahalla in Karnataka; Ayyan Kolly and Cherankode in Tamil Nadu and Cheeral, Vaduvanchal, Vellarimala, Glenrock, Birla Forest, Vazhikkadavu, Edakkara and Nilambur town in Kerala.

If the project materialised, it would connect the remote villages in the three States and the people could save a lot of time and money. To realise the project, a 20-day symbolic survey of the people has been progressing under the auspices of the action council.The survey reports and further details will be submitted to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Defence Minister A.K. Antony and Congress president Sonia Gandhi on November 10.

sajiv

4 special trains to clear pilgrim rush

HYDERABAD: The South Central Railway will run four special trains between Adilabad and Pandharpur via Parlivaijnath and Secunderabad on November 7 and 8 to clear extra rush of pilgrims attending 'Karthika Ekadasi' celebrations at Pandharpur.

Train no.737 will leave Adilabad at 8 p.m. on November 7 and reach Pandharpur at 10.35 a.m. the next day. In the return direction, train no.738 will depart Pandharpur at 8 p.m. on November 8 and reach Adilabad at 12.30 p.m. the next day.En route, these trains will stop at Kinwat, Himayatnagar, Bhokar, Mudkhed, Nanded, Purna, Parbhani, Gangakher, Parlivaijnath, Latur Road, Latur, Usmanabad, Barsi Town, Kurdwadi and Modilimb.

They will have 18 coaches — four sleeper class, 12 general second class and two second class luggage-cum-brake van coaches.A press release issued by the SCR here on Monday said the Adilabad-Pandharpur special train will run via Nizamabad and Secunderabad (two services).

Train no.737 will depart Adilabad at 9.30 p.m. on November 10, arrive/depart Secunderabad at 9/9.02. a.m. on November 11 and reach Pandharpur at 7.30 p.m. the same day. In the return direction, train no.738-A will depart Pandharpur at 11.35 p.m. on November 13 and arrive/depart Secunderabad at 9/9.02 a.m. the next day.En route these trains will stop at Kinwat, Himayatnagar, Bhokar, Mudkhed, Dharmabad, Basar, Nizamabad, Kamareddy, Medchal, Secunderabad, Vikarabad, Tandur, Wadi, Gulbarga, Solapur and Kurduwadi. They will have 18 coaches in all.


dwarakesh

Special trains to Tiruchi

Special trains are to be operated between Madurai and Tiruchi from November 7 to 29, except on Sundays, to clear passenger rush.

According to a Southern Railway press release, 0695 Tiruchi-Madurai special will leave Tiruchi at 7.30 a.m. and reach Madurai at 10.50 a.m.

Train 0696 Madurai-Tiruchi special will leave Madurai at 5.10 p.m. and reach Tiruchi at 8.20 p.m.

The specials will stop at Manapparai, Dindigul, Kodaikanal Road, Sholavandan and Koodal Nagar.

They will run with two air-conditioned two-tier, one air-conditioned three-tier, six sleeper class, one general second class and one second class-cum-luggage van coaches.

Advance reservation for the trains commences on November 5.

dwarakesh

Relief train for passengers

The long pending demand for the operation of an inter-city train service between Tiruchi and Madurai has temporarily been addressed with the railway authorities announcing a special train from November 7–29 to clear the rush.

However, the composition of compartments of the special train leaves much to be desired, public feel. On both sides, the new, daytime train will have only two general second class coaches. The rest – one AC 2-tier, one AC 3-tier and six sleeper class – constitute reserved compartments.

The Train (0695) Tiruchi–Madurai special will leave Tiruchi at 7.30 a.m. on all days except Sundays and arrive Madurai at 10.50 a.m. In the return direction, Train No. 0696 Madurai–Tiruchi special will leave Madurai at 5.10 p.m. on all days barring Sundays and arrive Tiruchi at 8.20 p.m.

The trains will stop at Manapparai, Dindigul, Kodaikanal Road, Sholavandan and Kudal Nagar. The sleeper class ticket fare including reservation charges from Tiruchi to Madurai will be Rs. 141; Rs. 276 in the case of AC 3-tier and Rs. 372 for second AC. The unreserved ticket fare will be Rs. 48. The reservation for this train commences on Wednesday.

A cross section of people question the logic of introducing a day-time train with sleeper class coaches for a travel time that is only a little over three hours. Finding fault with the train composition and the fare structure, the public are eager for continuity of the train on a permanent basis. C. Ramalingam of Woraiyur, a frequent traveller, pointed out that more passengers could be attracted only by running general coaches. Surprisingly, the reserved ticket fare in the superfast Vaigai Express from Tiruchi to Madurai is only Rs. 72 and the fare in the passenger trains is only Rs. 25. Barring the Guruvayur-Chennai Express, Madurai-Chennai Vaigai Superfast Express and the Tirunelveli-Mayiladuturai Passenger, there are no day time trains from Tiruchi to Madurai. Bus services on the route are ever on the rise.

Source: The Hindu