Members of the Federation of Tiruvarur - Pattukottai - Karaikudi Broad Gauge Line Rail Users Associations staged a gate meeting here on Tuesday urging the administration to deploy full-time gatekeepers along the newly converted broad gauge line from Tiruvarur to Karaikudi via Pattukottai and operate express trains from Karaikudi to Chennai via Pattukottai and back.
The Tiruchi MP and Congress leader Su. Thirunavukkarasar extended support to the federation by promising to take up their demand with the railway administration.
Members of eight rail users associations in the delta region who joined hands recently to form the federation were present at the meeting. The federation urged the administration to restore passenger services from Mayiladuthurai to Karaikudi via Tiruvarur and Pattukottai as was the case when the section was metre gauge.
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Federation president N. Jayaraman from Pattukottai presided. Organising secretary V. Vivekanandam was present. The federation urged the administration to deploy full-time gatekeepers in all the 72 manned level crossings falling in the Tiruvarur - Pattukottai - Karaikudi broad gauge section to enable operation of express trains to Chennai from Karaikudi during day and night time.
Mr. Jayaraman said Mr. Thirunavukkarasar had assured them he would take up the demand with the railway ministry and top officials besides raising it during the railway meeting with the MPs of Tiruchi and Madurai. A delegation of federation met the Divisional Railway Manager Ajay Kumar and handed over a memorandum.
He said the DRM had informed the delegation that the mobile gatekeeper system was put in place on board the DEMU service being operated in the section due to manpower shortage. He said the DRM had told them that recruitment of manpower was in progress and that training had to be given to them.
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