Railway Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda will convene a meeting of top officials on July 31 to discuss measures to be initiated to enhance safety at unmanned railway level-crossings.
Mr. Gowda, who arrived here on Saturday evening and went to his village, Devaragunda, in Sullia taluk, told reporters that the meeting to be held in New Delhi would discuss measures such as constructing speed bumps on roads on either side of unmanned level-crossings.
He was responding to a question on ensuring safety at level-crossings in view of the recent accident in Medak district of Telangana in which 14 schoolchildren were killed.
He said the cost of constructing the speed bumps could be borne by the Railways, the State government and also from the MP’s Local Area Development Fund.
The Minister said he would consider the demand for running an additional train between Mangalore and Hassan in view of the proposed closure of the Shiradi Ghat stretch of the Bangalore–Mangalore national highway from December 1 to May 31 for repairs.
Dakshina Kannada MP Nalin Kumar Kateel had urged him to run an additional train, he said. He would explore the possibility of operating the additional train between Mangalore and Bangalore, which was announced in the recent Railway Budget.
Alternatively, the passenger train running between Mangalore and Subramanya Road could be extended up to Hassan, he said.
