Railway Board Chairman Ashwani Lohani gave in-principle nod to the State’s wish list of projects presented by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan here on Friday.
At a meeting at the Secretariat, Mr. Lohani gave nod for a third and fourth line parallel to the existing two lines from Thiruvananthapuram Central to Kasaragod. Although the State sought high-speed trains on the new lines, Mr. Lohani pointed out technical issues and said semi-speed trains could be considered.
He suggested survey for the lines estimated to cost ₹16,600 crore. The prioritised projects to be taken up by Kerala Rail Development Corporation Limited (KRDCL), the joint venture between the State and Railways for executing viable rail projects on 51:49 cost-sharing basis, and the projects sanctioned in the State figured at the meeting.
Thalassery-Mysuru line
The State was asked to submit a detailed project report for the 247-km Thalassery-Mysuru line via Mananthavady before December 31. The line is expected to cost ₹3,209 crore and the distance is expected to come down from 810 to 570 km and the travelling time by 12 hours.
He agreed to consider the 65-km Erumeli-Punalur line, estimated to cost ₹1,600 crore, and the 15-km Ettumanur-Pala line as part of the Angamaly-Sabari line.
The Chief Minster urged Railways to bear the cost of the Sabari project and expressed readiness to bear 50% cost of the new projects. The Chief Minister was given an assurance on setting up a coaching terminal at Nemom and bio-toilets on all Kerala-bound trains.
Coach factory
The Chief Minister urged Mr. Lohani to allocate funds for completing the Angamaly-Sabari, Guruvayur-Thirunavaya, Ernakulam-Ambalappuzha doubling at the earliest. Regarding the rail coach factory at Palakkad, for which land was made available at Kanjikode by the State, Mr. Lohani said a decision could be taken only on a national perspective.
On the reported move to carve out 160 km from the Thiruvananthapuram railway division and to hand it over to the Madurai division, Mr. Lohani said there was no substance to it.
