Karnataka - Mysore   

Track doubling work: relocation of Srirangapatna station mooted

MYSORE: The brouhaha over the relocation of Tipu Sultan’s armoury at Srirangapatna to facilitate the track doubling work between Mysore and Bangalore continues, and there is a new suggestion that the railway station be shifted instead.

Some are of the view that it makes more sense to relocate the Srirangapatna railway station to the abandoned Paschimavahini station to expedite the track doubling work.

The project is in progress from the Bangalore-end but has hit a roadblock from the Mysore-side as Tipu Sultan’s 18th century armoury is proving to be a formidable citadel for the railways to breach given the maze of conservation laws it has to negotiate.

Though the Archaeology Department has the expertise to relocate the monuments and has executed many such projects, the idea of shifting the Srirangapatna station was mooted at a recent meeting held between the Railway authorities and the Archaeology Department.

The existing railway track cuts across a portion of the Fort and the armoury on the banks of the Cauvery river. One of the reasons cited for shifting the monuments is to facilitate the laying of the second track besides the existing one. Sources in the Archaeology Department told The Hindu that shifting the existing station would “serve both Srirangapatna and Paschimavahini which attracts thousands of pilgrims regularly throughout the year”.

At present, long-distance express trains with more than 18 coaches do not halt at Srirangapatna for technical reasons. This is because Srirangapatna is an island railway station. Trains with more than 18 coaches cannot halt at the station as a few of the coaches tend to overshoot the platform and are stranded on the bridge. This makes it difficult for the passengers to board or disembark. Only a few passenger trains with 18 coaches or less, halt at Srirangapatna. So the shifting of stations to Paschimavahini has many advantages. Sources said that there would be more trains halting at the town and this would improve its economic fortunes.The relocation would also help overcome technical limitations, said conservationists.

But Railway officials ruled out such a possibility as the curvature of the existing track does not permit the alignment to link up with the old Paschimavahini station. Sources said the Archaeology Department was yet to receive a request for NOC from the Railways to take up the work.

However, C.H. Vijayashankar, MP, said land acquisition process was on. He said the question mark over track alignment and relocation of armoury would be resolved soon.

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