A possible train mishap was averted with an alert track maintainer noticing a weld failure of rails on the Mumbai-Mangaluru Konkan Railway Corporation network between Innanje and Padubidri in Udupi district in the wee hours of Sunday, May 26.
Track maintainer Pradeep Shetty, who was on night patrol of the assigned stretch of the track, noticed the weld failure at around 2.25 a.m. and immediately informed the higher officials. Train No. 16345 Mumbai LTT-Thiruvananthapuram Central Netravathi Express was to leave Udupi at 3 a.m. towards Mangaluru Junction while Train No. 16595 KSR Bengaluru-Karwar Panchaganga Express was to pass through the stretch at around 4 a.m. during that time.
Senior officials from Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd. (KRCL), including Senior Engineer Gopalakrishnan and Senior Section Engineer Mohan from Udupi felicitated Pradeep Shetty, the track maintainer, with a ₹25000 cash award after he detected a weld failure between Innanje and Padubidri on Mumbai-Mangaluru KRCL network in the wee hours of May 26, in Padubidri, Udupi district. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Officials immediately took up restoration measures of the defective rail at km 706/0-1 and the track was certified fit for operation by 5.58 a.m. with speed restriction of 20 kmph. KRCL Chairman and Managing Director Santos Kumar Jha announced an immediate cash award of ₹25,000 to Mr. Shetty which would be paid at the restored track site in the afternoon, said officials.
Vishal Shenoy, a railfan from Udupi who was on board the Netravathi Express narrated his experience and said the train stopped just before Padubidri at around 3.55 a.m. and was hauled back to Innanje, a distance of about 7 km. He learnt that the Panchaganga Express bound to Karwar was detained at Nandikur Station, about 9 km South of Padubidri. While Netravathi Express was detained at Innanje, Mr. Nayak saw a Rail Maintenance Vehicle (RMV) moving towards Padubidri (for track restoration).
The train traffic was restored after the track was certified fit for operation, said KRCL officials.
