Tuticorin Railway Station to be upgraded at Rs. 1 Crore

Hemant Kumar, Divisional Manager, Southern Railway (Madurai division), has said that the Tuticorin railway station would be upgraded to a `model station', enhancing the infrastructure facilities by leaps and bounds.

Interacting with a group of industrialists, organised by the Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Tuticorin, recently, he said that new facilities like foot over-bridge connecting the first and second platforms, a VIP lounge and a waiting hall, among others, would be established at an `estimated outlay' of Rs.1 crore to help the station attain the status.

On the plea of industrialists to have an overnight train connecting Tuticorin with Coimbatore, he said the request would be considered only after the double laning work between Madurai and Dindigul was completed.

"Presently, the track on the sector was utilised 125 per cent of its capacity between 8 p.m. and 7 a.m., the following day, and hence there was no possibility of introducing a new train," he told them.

When some industrialists pointed out the `pathetic' condition of the majority of coaches used of Pearl City Express (Tuticorin to Chennai Egmore), whereas good coaches were used in other trains originating from the division, the Divisional Manager said "we are not showing any step motherly attitude to the passengers here".

"At the moment, coach requirement was far exceeding the production. We are expecting more new coaches, since plans are afoot to augment coach production at the Integral Coach Factory, Chennai, and the Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala, besides a new coach production unit in the country," he said.

Replying to the suggestion by D.R. Kodeeswaran, secretary, ICCIT, for more ticket counters at Tuticorin railway station, Mr Kumar said "if it was found that a reservation clerk was handling more than 200 requisitions/applications per shift, we would allot more counters".

On the demand for a change in the departure time of Pearl City Express on its return journey from Chennai Egmore to Tuticorin, he said the division had already suggested the Southern Railway head quarters in this regard.