’Mangalore Division’ - One step at a time can get to the goal

’Mangalore Division’ - One step at a time can get to the goal

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangalore, July 14, 2014:   Railway division for  Mangalore is not in the railway budget, against expectations, the sources in railways said that the proposals announced in the budget are a step towards the long pending demand.

The track doubling of Surathkal-Mangalore-Ullal and the announcement of the Byndoor-Kasargod passenger service are an attempt to bring out Mangalore from the grip of Palakkad division and carve a division on its own, highly placed source in Konkan Railway Corporation Limited (KRCL) told media representatives.

That no new zones or divisions were announced in the budget and the priority of putting railway in sound financial condition in the long term helps Mangalore claims, said a former Palakkad divisional manager.

"Normally, if a new division is carved out of an existing one, compensation in the form of new projects are offered. The outlaying of sufficient funds for Kanjikode rail factory in Palakkad can be regarded as a compensation," he observed. The zero fund allocation for Shoranur-Mangalore electrification and the meager outlay of Rs five crore for Kozhikode-Mangalore track doubling also strengthens the stand that Union Railway Ministry is no longer keen to keep Mangalore under Palakkad.

The truth that Southern railways demand for allocating funds for the ongoing projects on Mangalore side has been overlooked. Most importantly, the KRCL has given green signal to streamline their operations in Mangalore following which the corporation has opened a full-time Public Relations Office just one week before the presentation of budget. "With regard to giving a status to Mangalore division, the present budget has set  grounds to be an HQ.

Sooner or later, it will be a part of the KRCL" said the source. A first of its kind, commencing or terminating a service from Kasargod, an ill-equipped station in terms of infrastructure is also been treated in this regard. "It is a deliberate attempt to make the passenger as Mangalores own as there are lot of grievances that most of the services introduced through the port city are benefiting  Kerala," the regional level officer observed.

Survey questions :  Though Union Railway Minister D V Sadananda Gowda has included the project of Kanjangad (Kerala)-Kaniyur (Karnataka) line for survey in his maiden budget, a confusion is prevailing. The traffic survey for the first phase of the project, Kanjangad-Panathur (41 km) has already been completed in 2009 and a report pending before the railway board.

What the inter-state action committee working for the realisation of the project has been demanding was to conduct survey for the second phase, Panathur-Kaniyur (30 km) and allocation of fund for the first phase. "There is a confusion regarding the announcement. No clarification whether railway has announced a fresh survey of the entire route or for the second phase?" said Kochukunnel, a member of the committee.

The action committee is to meet the minister on this issue. In 2009, then Southern Railway deputy chief operations Manager, Rathi R Raju had completed the traffic survey and found that the route is financially viable and profitable. Only time can heal all wounds.