Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd. (KRCL) has given operational feasibility for extension of Train Nos 12685/12686 Chennai Central-Mangaluru Central Superfast Express towards Karwar. However, the train may be extended only till Murdeshwar and not till Kumta as demanded, the corporation said.
In a letter to a former National Railway Users Consultative Committee (NRUCC) member Kunjal Venkatesh Kini on August 3, KRCL Chief Operations Manager V.C. Sinha has said that the corporation examined his letter of June 13 seeking extension of the service till Kumta. It was found operationally feasible to extend the train up to Murdeshwar and not till Kumta as suggested.
This was keeping in mind the constraints of handing over the train to Southern Railway to maintain the existing timetable of Train Nos 12685/12686 between Mangaluru and Chennai, Mr. Sinha said. A copy of the letter has been forwarded to Southern Railway for operational feasibility, he said.
Mr. Kini, who is also president of Byndoor Rail Yatri Sangha, wrote to KRCL to allow extension of the Chennai Superfast Express to Kumta so as to cater to the travel requirements of people in the coastal region to and from Chennai. He said that many in the coastal region were engaged in business activities in Chennai. Similarly, people from Chennai and surrounding areas visit Manipal near Udupi for healthcare, education and tourism and the Kollur Mookambika Temple near Byndoor. Extension of the train till Kumta will help a large section of travellers as there was no direct connectivity to Chennai from this coastal region, he said in his letter.
Subsequently, Shivamogga MP B.Y. Raghavendra too wrote a letter to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw reiterating the demand for extension of the train. He said that he has received many representations from the travelling public and associations in this regard.
Letter to Southern Rly.
KRCL in its letter to Southern Railway on August 3 said that the train could be extended till Murdeshwar and asked the latter to examine the feasibility of the proposal from its end.
Train No 12685 on its arrival at Mangaluru Central at 7.10 a.m. could be dispatched towards Murdeshwar at 7.20 a.m. to reach the destination at 11.10 a.m. In the return trip, Train No 12686 could leave Murdeshwar at 11.50 a.m. to reach Mangaluru Central at 4 p.m. After undergoing maintenance, it could leave Mangaluru Central for Chennai at 4.55 p.m. as per its regular timing, KRCL has said.
