The Southern Railway (SR) will send a proposal to South Western Railway (SWR) to extend train no. 16575/576 Yeshwantpur-Mangaluru Junction-Yeshwantpur tri-weekly Express till Mangaluru Central.
It also might suggest change in departure timing from Mangaluru, which is at 11.30 a.m. at present. The train reaches Yeshwantpur at 8.30 p.m., which passengers feel highly inconvenient.
This decision follows widespread discontent among passengers, both from Bengaluru and Mangaluru, to short-terminate the train at Mangaluru Junction and at Yeshwantpur. It was originally announced to ply between Bengaluru and Mangaluru Central as a daily service by the then Railway Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda.
Divisional Railway Manager of SR’s Palakkad division Naresh Lalwani told The Hindu that the zone has to shift an existing service from Mangaluru Central to Mangaluru Junction to accommodate the Mangaluru-Bengaluru Express.
The division is doing the exercise of identifying a train, which is not patronised much to be shifted to Mangaluru Junction. Chennai Egmore Express and Kacheguda bi-weekly Express are some of the trains on the radar.
DRUCC meeting
G. Hanumanth Kamath, member of Palakkad Divisional Railway Users’ Consultative Committee and president of West Coast Rail Yatri Abhivriddhi Sangha, raised the issue during the recent committee meeting in Palakkad.
Mr. Kamath told The Hindu that he highlighted the problems being faced by passengers of the Bengaluru-Mangaluru Express that was flagged off on April 9. Mangaluru Central is conspicuously located in the heart of the city while Junction is located remotely, he had said. The present departure timing too is inconvenient for passengers as they reach Bengaluru late night, Mr. Kamath had said and urged the Railways to start the train early in the morning, preferably before 8 a.m. Mr. Lalwani had promised the member to hold discussions with the SWR about extension till Central as well change in departure timing.
