All works related to railway facility improvement in Kumbakonam will be completed by December, well ahead of the Mahamaham slated for February next, according to Southern Railway General Manager Ashok Kumar Aggarwal.
Speaking to the media after inspecting the development works at Kumbakonam Junction on Friday, Mr.Aggarwal said proposals worth Rs. 4 crore have been forwarded to the Railway Board for improving facilities in the junction and meeting the needs of devotees during the Mahamaham.
The Railway Ministry has so far released Rs.1 crore following which some of the important works have been taken up, he said. They included platform extension to accommodate 24 coaches, overbridge for Platform Three, additional sanitation and drinking water amenities, among other things. The railways has already remitted Rs. 16 lakh as fee to the Kumbakonam Municipality to connect the drainage lines to the main underground drainage system.
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In the run up to the Mahamaham, special train services would be operated for 20 days and 50 temporary toilets and bathing sheds would be installed on the junction premises.
Mr.Aggarwal assured that all development works in Kumbakonam junction would be completed by December to meet the Mahamaham rush in February. All stations in the Thanjavur-Mayiladuthurai section would get a facelift ahead of the festival, he said. On the track doubling work apace in the Tiruchi Division, Mr.Aggarwal said while the Golden Rock-Thanjavur section work would take another two years to be completed, survey on the Kumbakonam-Villupuram stretch has been completed at a cost of Rs. 2 crore and has been forwarded to the Railway Ministry for approval.
Divisional Railway Manager, Tiruchi, Atul Kumar Aggarwal, Senior Divisional Operations Manager Rathi Priya, Senior Divisional Commercial Manager Padmadoss, and other railway officials were present.
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