Curves on Kerala rail routes to be straightened soon to improve speed of trains, says railways

Thiruvananthapuram: The railways has initiated efforts to straighten out sharp curves along railway lines between Thiruvananthapuram and Mangalore to enhance the speed of trains running between these stations, a senior railway official said on Monday.

Addressing a press conference here, Thiruvananthapuram Divisional Railway Manager Manish Thapliyal said that the railways expects to complete these works within the next three months.

“We are focusing on works that do not require the acquisition of land, as it will be a time-consuming process. Our idea is to ease the curves so that the trains can improve their speed. The maximum speed allowed on the railway lines under our division is 110 km per hour,” Thapliyal said.

He said that as part of the ongoing infrastructure development and passenger amenities improvement programmes, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be inaugurating various projects and flagging off new trains at functions organised across the country.

The PM will virtually flag off a new train between Kollam and Tirupati on Tuesday. He will also inaugurate the new goods shed completed at Valliyoor.

Speaking about the ‘One Station, One Product’ scheme brought about to help local artisans, whereby they can take a stall at railway stations for 15 days and sell their products there, he said, “We have 17 such stalls under our section.” The Prime Minister will be virtually inaugurating two such stalls in Thiruvananthapuram district on Tuesday.

Responding to questions about the alleged delays of other trains in Kerala to make way for the Vande Bharat Express, the DRM denied it. “We had to slightly tweak the timings of other trains. There are no delays,” he claimed.

He added that Vande Bharat trains are a big hit in Kerala, and that all states are demanding one for their state.

“These are new trains and help improve ticket availability. The Vande Bharat services in Kerala have been hugely popular,” Thapliyal said.