‘Retain railway stations in rural areas’

The Ammapettai Union Committee of the Communist Party of India has reiterated the need to retain Ammapettai and other railway stations in rural areas for the benefit of commuters.

The committee which had earlier submitted a memorandum in this regard to the Divisional Railway Manager, Southern Railway, Tiruchi, has sought the support of S. Ramalingam, Mayiladuthurai MP who is also member of the Consultative Committee, Rural Development Ministry.

In the memorandum submitted to the Rural Development Ministry Consultative Committee member, the petitioners have pointed out that local passenger services operated on the Thanjavur-Tiruvarur-Nagapattinam and Thanjavur-Kumbakonam-Mayiladuthurai sections was an affordable public transport facility for the common man.

Citing some reports appearing in a section of the media that poor income-generating railway stations in rural areas were to be closed, the CPI claimed that the passenger services were utilised by a sizeable number of regular passengers to commute between major and small towns in these sections such as Ammapettai, Ayyampettai, Pasupathikovil, Dharasuram and others to Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, Nagapattinam, Kumbakonam, Mayiladuthurai and Karaikal in these two sections.

Receiving the memorandum, Mr. Ramalingam assured the petitioners that he would take up the issue with the authorities concerned , said M. A. Bharathi, district secretary, CPI, Thanjavur district.