The Nilgiris-Wayanad National Highway and Railway Action Committee has urged the State government to include Wayanad district in the proposed semi-high-speed railway line from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasaragod.
Committee convener T.M. Rasheed said a dedicated railway line should be constructed from Kozhikode to Wayanad for the benefit of settlers in rural Kozhikode and the hilly district. Besides, Sulthan Bathery in Wayanad is the municipal town close to Bengaluru and Mysuru in the neighbouring Karnataka.
So, a railway line from Kozhikode to Sulthan Bathery could be considered. Such a proposal will also go a long way in addressing environmental issues, Mr. Rasheed said.
He added that a preliminary study had estimated the cost of the high-speed rail project at ₹56,000 crore. Trains that are expected to move at 130 to 180 km per hour can cover the distance in four hours.
The proposal was provide to halt at 10 stations including Kochuveli, Kollam, Chengannur, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Tirur, Kozhikode, Kannur, and Kasaragod. Unfortunately, the mega projects envisaged by State government usually neglected Wayanad district.
Mr. Rasheed said elected representatives from the district should take up the proposal for the dedicated railway line with the government. Also, the State government is going ahead with a proposal for constructing dedicated railway lines to the international airports in Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi for inter-modal transport.
