Tenders are proposed to be floated for the setting up of Coach Indication Boards here at the Nagapattinam Railway Station. This will be one of the significant interventions taken up by the Southern Railway following complaints of serious lack of critical passenger amenities for a main station such as Nagapattinam.
Lack of coach indication display boards on platforms 1, 2, and 3, has for long left the teeming pilgrims that arrive from across the country, primarily to Velankanni and Nagore, harried. In a written communication to the Thanjavur District Rail Users’ association president A. Giri, the Southern Railway said the expression of interest had been called from interested parties for setting up Coach Indication Boards here.
The Thanjavur District Rail Users’ Association had earlier made a representation to the Southern Railway citing a report in The Hindu on November 24, 2013 on the lack of amenities and safety concerns raised by railway police. It was reported that the erstwhile accounts office building is seen as a security threat, especially for schoolgirls passing by, taking the shortcut to the government school nearby. In its response to A. Giri, Southern Railway has stated that the engineering department of Tiruchirapalli division would take up the demolition work and complete them in three months.
The pay-and-use toilet had been put in place on private contract basis. A garbage cleaning machine had been put to operation here.
While expressing satisfaction on the improved amenities, the Consumer Protection Council of Nagapatinam has requested for right-size ticket counter holes to facilitate communication between the booking clerks and the passengers.
According to Aravind Kumar, Vice-President, Consumer Protection Council of Nagapattinam, the counter holes are too small for audibility, delaying the ticketing transactions between the clerk, and the passenger. .
The UPS is not functional for the Unreserved Ticketing System (UTS) here at the station, he says.
The broadgauge line marks completion of five years today (on Wednesday) since its inception on February 27, 2009. However, for rail enthusiasts, this completion should mark the introduction of basic amenities, sustainable over a long period.
