The Southern Railway should expedite pending works in Madurai Railway Division, said Tamil Nadu Foodgrains Merchants Association.
A memorandum submitted to Southern Railway General Manager Rakesh Mishra by a delegation of the association led by its president S.P. Jeyapragasam and Dindigul MP N.S.V. Chithan said most of the current booking and reservation counters in Madurai railway station remained closed owing to severe shortage of manpower. If additional staff were posted, passengers seeking tickets at the eleventh hour could board trains without difficulty.
Also, to enable the public to buy platform tickets easily, vending machines should be installed at the railway station, they demanded.
The old foot overbridge connecting the six platforms had been remaining closed for the past six months owing to maintenance work, causing inconvenience to passengers as they had to walk a long distance to reach the platforms using the new foot overbridge.
There was a good patronage for the twice-a-week Duronto Express between Madurai and Chennai. It could be made a daily service. The coaches were old and must be replaced with new coaches, it was stated in the memorandum.