The Thanjavur District Railway Users’ Association has urged the railway administration to carry out the track-doubling project in the Villupuram-Thanjavur mainline section via Mayiladuthurai and Kumbakonam.
Representatives of the association submitted a memorandum containing this demand as also other demands to the Southern Railway General Manager A.K. Agarwal during his visit to Kumbakonam on March 26.
In the memorandum, the association secretary A. Giri said the Villupuram-Thanjavur section via Kumbakonam was one of the oldest stretches with operation of trains since 1877. Rail traffic in this old section had almost become saturated now. Demands for operation of more new trains in this electrified high revenue generating section could not be met as it was a single line stretch.
Considering the growing traffic in this section, the Railway Board had already approved engineering-cum-traffic survey for track doubling between Villupuram and Thanjavur in 2019.
Gauge conversion in the branch section between Mayiladuthurai-Karaikudi had been completed and was awaiting regular train operations. Gauge conversion works in the Tiruthuraipoondi-Agasthiyampalli stretch and new railway line works in the Nagapattinam-Tiruthuraipoondi, Mannargudi-Pattukottai and Karaikal-Peralam sections were expected to be completed in the coming years. These sections will also require new trains in the Villupuram direction. Since the age-old Villupuram-Thanjavur mainline was the feeder line for these branch lines, operation of new trains would lead to further congestion of traffic in the mainline section.
The memorandum, hence, appealed to the Southern Railway General Manager to favour with valuable recommendations to the Railway Board for early doubling of the Villupuram-Thanjavur mainline section via Kumbakonam and complete the project before the Mahamaham festival to be held at Kumbakonam in early 2028.
Plea for new trains
The association has also requested the railway administration to introduce a new train from Tiruchi to Mumbai via Thanjavur; new train connectivity to Palakkad/Guruvayur via Pollachi from Mayiladuthurai; new train service from Thanjavur to Hubbali via Pakala, Guntakal and Dharmavaram; diversion of the Mayiladuthurai-Mysuru express via Namakkal and introduction of MEMU trains in the Villupuram-Mayiladuthurai-Tiruchi section.
