Passenger train services on the Dindigul-Palani broad gauge section will begin on November 20, Divisional Railway Manager A.K. Rastogi said.
Addressing a consultative meeting on railway projects in southern Tamil Nadu here on Saturday, Mr. Rastogi said that three services would be operated from Dindigul to Palani. The gauge conversion work on Virudhunagar-Manamadurai section would be completed by January. Train services on the section were scheduled to be operated from February after clearance by the Commissioner of Railway Safety, he added.
The inspection of Railway Electrification work between Tirunelveli and Nagercoil would be done in the first week of December, Mr. Rastogi added.
He said the work of installing six escalators in Madurai railway junction and two in Tirunelveli would be completed by December-end.
Mr. Rastogi said that the extension of Chalukya Express between Dadar and Yesvanthpur (Bangalore) up to Tirunelveli will be helpful to the passengers since the journey will take only one day and two nights to reach Mumbai.
Former Madurai MP A. G. S. Rambabu urged the Chamber to organise an all-party MP meet to discuss the railway projects before submitting a pre-budget memorandum to the Railway Minister. He recalled how such a meeting helped the immediate introduction of Tuticorin-Bangalore Express train on the then newly gauge converted track.
Better railway facility was important among the infrastructure required to attract multi-national companies to set up industries in the southern districts, he noted.
