Over 89,000 jobs are up for grabs at Indian Railways. A Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) employment notification has been issued earlier in the week for recruitment of 62,907 staff in Level 1 pay scale and out of these, apprentices trained in Railway establishments will be given preference to the tune of over 12,000 vacancies which is in line with the recent amendments made in the Apprentices Act, 1961. Another RRB notification of Ministry of Railways in a Centralized Employment Notification (CEN 01/2018) had also invited applications for filling up 26502 jobs in Post of Assistant Loco Pilot (ALP) & Technician Categories. The recruitment process of these jobs are also open now.

Notification — CEN 02/ 2018 — which announced more than 62 thousand jobs has opportunities for Helper (Electrical, Bridge, Civil, P Way, Track Machine, Works, Mechanical, S and T, Signal, Telecommunication, Medical), Track Maintainer Grade IV, Hospital Attendant, Assistant Pointsman, Gateman, and Porter/ Hamal/ Sweeper cum Porter.

Read: RRB CEN 02/ 2018 Recruitment Notification Out; 62907 Vacancies

According to Railways Ministry, for the year 2017-18, about 26,000 training slots for Apprenticeship training have been notified.  This is in addition to over 4000 persons already undergoing training in various establishments.

Last week, RRB of Indian Railways has come up with another major recruitment drive for 62907 vacancies for Group D posts. Candidates in the age group of 18-31 years who have cleared class 10th and/ or ITI or NAC in the relevant trade are eligible to apply. RRB notification is now available at the official websites of the respective RRBs and in last week edition of Employment News.

Online registration for the same has begun and the last date for submission of applications is March 12, 2018. Candidates shall have to apply at the official websites of the respective RRBs.

Read: RRB Clarifies On Age Limit Issue Over CEN 01/ 2018 Recruitment

Before that, on last month, Railway Recruitment Cell of the East Central Railways published a notification for the recruitment of apprentice position in various locations like Patna, Samastipur, Dhanbad and Chandauli. Online applications were invited then from candidates for Apprenticeship in the designated trades at Divisions/Units in the jurisdiction of East Central Railway against 1898 vacancies, said the East Central Railways notification.
The online application for this East Central Railways apprentice recruitment has started from January 30 and it will be concluded by February 28.

As part of Skill India initiative, Ministry of Railways has been contributing in a big way to provide training to Apprentices in various disciplines training in categories like Fitter, Turner, Machinist, Welder, Painter, Carpenter, Electrician, Refrigerator and AC Mechanic, Mechanic (Motor Vehicle/Diesel) etc., since long.  Ministry of Railways has kept a target of training of 30 thousand Apprentices in its 16 Zonal Units and 7 Production Units.

“With a large set up of Workshops and Production Units, Indian Railways has been in the forefront of implementation of the Apprentices Act, 1961.  Railway Workshops have been imparting Apprentices,” said a statement from Railways Ministry.

Apprentices’ Training consists of Basic Training and On-the-Job Training/Practical Training at workplace.

Basic training is an essential component of apprenticeship training for those who have not undergone any institutional training/skill before taking up on-the-job training/practical training.  It counts for 20-30% of overall duration of Apprenticeship Training.  The component of on-the-job training is performed and undertaken in the establishment itself.

The railway minister, however, tweeted saying more than one lakh job opportunities at Indian Railways:

 

CCTV footage from the Repubblica Metro Station in Milan, Italy, shows the moment a toddler fell down on the train tracks and was rescued by a quick-thinking teenager. Lorenzo Pianazza, an 18-year-old student, jumped onto the tracks after he saw a 2-and-a-half-year-old boy fall down just a minute before the train was scheduled to arrive, reports ABC News. Footage captured shows the young boy running towards the tracks from the platform and slipping down while his mother sits on a bench at the platform. Even as the child’s mother and panicked bystanders gathered on the platform, Lorenzo jumped down to rescue him. After picking up the child and handing him to his mother, Lorenzo even found time to retrieve his toy.

Meanwhile, Claudia Flora Castellano, the station manager who saw the incident unfold on monitors in the control room, immediately pressed the red button to stop the train that was about to pull into the station.

The whole incident was captured on camera. Watch it below:

Azienda Trasporti Milanesi, the company responsible for public transportation in Milan, identified the child as Mohamed.

In a tweet shared on February 14, they thanked Lorenzo and Claudia for their courageous gesture.

The Mayor of Milan, Giuseppe Sala, invited Lorenzo and Claudia to his office following the incident to thank them.

“A few minutes ago, I received at Palazzo Marino Lorenzo and Claudia, the two boys who saved the child who fell in the subway. I thanked them warmly…” he wrote in a Facebook post on February 14.

Essere Sindaco di una grande città comporta attimi di grande gioia, che possono affiancarsi a momenti di dolore. Quello che conta è attraversarli insieme, uniti in una grande comunità.
Pochi minuti fa ho ricevuto a Palazzo Marino Lorenzo e Claudia, i due ragazzi che ieri hanno salvato il bambino caduto tra i binari nella metropolitana. Li ho ringraziati calorosamente, sicuro di parlare a nome di tutti i milanesi. Purtroppo però la giornata di oggi è stata segnata anche dal tragico incendio in via Cogne. Siamo ancora con il fiato sospeso per il giovane ragazzo che sta lottando per restare in vita e, nel frattempo, stiamo gestendo la sistemazione delle famiglie che hanno dovuto abbandonare il loro appartamento.

Indian Railways has announced special trains to cater to additional demand expected due to the Holi festival. The Railways will be operating “Holi special trains” on four routes. These include a weekly Jan Sadharan special train service between Gorakhpur (Uttar Pradesh) and Mumbai, according to a press release dated February 13 by the Northern Railway – which caters to one of the zones served by the Railways. The carrier said the Holi special trains are aimed to “clear extra rush of passengers during Holi Festival”. The Holi festival falls on Thursday, March 2 this year.

Here are five things to know about the Holi 2018 special Gorakhpur-Mumbai train announced by the Railways:

1. The Northern Railway said the weekly Holi special Jan Sadharan service will be operated with train No. 02597/02598.

Gorakhpur to Mumbai Holi special train schedule

2. The train No. 02597 will depart from Gorakhpur every Saturday including February 17 till March 10 at 8:25 am and arrive in Mumbai at 12:15 pm the next day.

3. In the opposite direction, the Holi special train No. 02598 will depart from Mumbai every Sunday from February 18 to March 11 at 2:20 pm to arrive in Gorakhpur at 6:45 pm the next day, according to the Northern Railway.

4. The Holi special train service will comprise sixteen general class and “two disabled friendly cum luggage van coaches”, according to the Northern Railway.

5. Aimed to “clear extra rush of passengers” during the Holi festival, the weekly service between Gorakhpur and Mumbai will stop at stations including Basti, Kanpur Central, Jhansi, Habibganj and Kalyan in both directions. Other halts will include Khalilabad, Lucknow, Itarsi, Bhusaval and Gonda, according to the Northern Railway

Indian Railways has announced special trains between Ramnagar (Uttarakhand) and Howrah (West Bengal) to cater to additional demand due to the Holi 2018. The Railways will be operating “Holi special trains” with on four routes, including Ramnagar-Howrah-Ramnagar, according to a press release dated February 13 by the Northern Railway – which caters to one of the zones served by the Railways. The Holi special trains are aimed to “clear extra rush of passengers during Holi Festival”. The Holi festival falls on March 2 this year.

Here are five things to know about the Holi 2018 special Ramnagar-Howrah-Ramnagar train announced by the Railways:

1. The Northern Railway said a weekly Ramnagar-Howrah-Ramnagar service will be operated with train No. 05007/05008.

Ramnagar to Howrah Holi special train schedule

2. The Holi Special Train will depart from Ramnagar on all Fridays from February 16 to March 9 at 6:15 pm and arrive in Howrah at 07:10 am the third day, according to the Northern Railway.

3. The train (Holi Special train No. 05008) will depart from Howrah every Sunday including February 18 to March 11 at 8:35 am to arrive in Ramnagar at 4:45 p.m. the next day.

4. The train will comprise one AC 2 Tier, one AC 3 Tier, six sleeper class, six general class and “two disabled friendly cum luggage van coaches”, according to the Northern Railway.

5. This Holi Special train will stop at stations including Kashipur, Baheri, Izzatnagar, Bareilly City, Bareilly, Sitapur cantonment, Gorakhpur, Potoree, Barauni, Jasidih, Madhupr, Asansol, Durgapur and Bardhman in both directions. Some other halts include Bhojipura, Bazpur, Pantnagar, Kiccha, Gonda, Khalilabad, Kaptanganj, Chhapra, Tamkuhi Road and Jhajha.

 

The Chennai Division of Southern Railway is gearing up to induct 3 phase EMUs into service in the Chennai – Tambaram – Chengalpattu – Tirumalpur route. Trial runs of this 3 phase EMU rake are being conducted between Tambaram – Chengalpattu. After completion of statutory trial runs, this 3 phase EMU rake will be introduced for passenger services. The date of introduction will be notified later.

Shri R.K. Kulshrestha, General Manager, Southern Railway accompanied by Shri A.K.Kathpal, Principal Chief Mechanical Engineer, Shri Naveen Gulati, Divisional Railway Manager, Chennai, and other Railway Officials, inspected the EMU Car Shed unit located at Tambaram for commissioning of the new EMU Suburban rail coach manufactured at ICF/S.Rly and handed over to EMU Car Shed, Tambaram, for public services.

The new 12-car rake comprising of 4 units with solid state IGBT (Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistors) based 3 phase propulsion drive system, all the coaches are provided with many additional features for better passenger journey and additional safety features in ladies compartment

Salient features of 3 phase EMUs:

• Manufactured by ICF, Chennai.
• Coaches are fabricated with stainless steel body and provided with electronic sensors for computer monitored speed control and braking system.
• Energy efficient and Higher hauling capacity
• LED indication for chain pulling.
• Regeneration of 30% power during braking for conservation of energy.
• Smooth speed control by VVVF technology for comfortable riding.
• Event Recorder for recording the data of train operation and other train control systems.
• Surveillance cameras (CCTV) in ladies coaches to strengthen security for women passengers.
• In Addition to fans, Modular Roof Mounted Forced Air Ventilation System which supplies 16000m3/hr fresh air into the passenger area is provided.
• GPS based Passenger Information System for announcement of stations and display as well.
• LED based lighting for better illumination and energy conservation.
• Maximum speed – 105 kmph.
• Stainless steel body coaches for aesthetic appearance, better durability and safety.
• Corrosion resistance stainless steel pipelines for more reliability and minimal maintenance.
• Passenger carrying capacity:  Seats – 1168 nos. and standing passengers – 4852 nos.
• Air-conditioned cab for crew comfort.
• PA system for private communication between crew and also for in-coach announcement.
• Emergency stop button in cabin for immediate stop, during emergency situations

This is the second year after the accounts of Indian Railways were merged — some might say obscured — with the rest of the budget. As a result, there has been little discussion on the plans, performance and outlays of an organisation that generates revenues of over ₹2 lakh crore, employs 1.3 million people and transports a staggering 20 million or more passengers every day.

The Centre has rightly identified the focus areas, for which it has targeted a capex spending of over ₹1.48 lakh crore. These are: track doubling, gauge conversion, better designed coaches, electrification, beefing up rolling stock, and work on the dedicated freight corridor (DFC).

Besides, the refurbishing of railway stations and improvement of the suburban rail network, not to mention the ‘bullet train’, find a mention. However, the key concern here is that the capex spending will be raised through over ₹93,000 crore of borrowings. Budgetary support for 2018-19 at ₹53,060 crore is, in fact, lower than the budgeted sum of ₹55,000 crore for 2017-18, with the revised estimates for the current year at just ₹40,000 crore. The inability of the Railways to spend the Centre’s outlay perhaps tells us that the former has its task cut out when it comes to execution.

This is borne out by the tardy progress with respect to DFC. Managerial reform steps such as delegation of powers to general managers do not seem to have yielded results so far. The Centre needs to fix this issue soon, given the dire infrastructure shortcomings with respect to safety, requiring investment in track maintenance, automatic signalling and training of the workforce.

The operating ratio (of revenues to expenditure) remains adverse as ever. It is expected to reduce (improve) to 92.8 in 2018-19 from over 96 in the present fiscal, on the back of a steep increase in sundry revenues, which basically means monetisation of its real estate. While passenger earnings are based on just a 0.1 per cent growth in passengers — a concession to the growing inroads made by air travel and road transport as a medium-distance option — goods earnings are based on an additional 51 million tonnes of freight. The Railways must focus on passenger comfort and safety to improve its share in the transport mix; the Centre has rightly rationalised freight rates and the benefits are showing this year.

But a major concern over which the Centre is quiet is the impact of automation on workforce deployment. There are over two lakh vacancies in the Railways, of which a lakh, according to the Kakodkar panel, pertain to safety alone. Notably, according to the DP Tripathi committee report on loco pilots, about 16,000 posts remain unfilled. Automation will require a rejigging of workers from one job description to another, without any impact on outcomes. Indian Railways has built its reputation on the morale of its workforce. In its drive to modernise and improve efficiencies, these gains should not be frittered away.

Railway infrastructure growth in southern districts of Tamil Nadu is set to suffer a setback as the Union Budget has poorly allotted funds for the ongoing doubling works in the state. Even 10 per cent of estimated funds have not been allotted for the doubling of Madurai-Thoothukudi, Vanchi Maniyachi-Tirunelveli- Nagercoil and Kanniyakumari-Thiruvananthpauram lines.

According to the railway pink book submitted before Parliament on Tuesday, for 160-km-long Madurai-Vanchimaniyachi-Thoothukudi line, the railways has sanctioned Rs 75 crore, while the project cost is estimated at 1182.23 crore.

Similarly, another doubling project of the 102-km Vanchi Maniyachi-Tirunelveli-Nagercoil section which was estimated to cost Rs 1003.94 crore has been sanctioned just Rs 75 crore.

The Kanniyakumari-Nagercoil-Thiruvananthapuram line estimated to cost Rs 1431.90 crore has received Rs 110 crore, out of which Rs 100 crores was proposed to be sourced from extra budgetary resources.

While Tamil Nadu witnesses highest inter-state migration for education, health and employment, transportation demand has been increasing every year.

People of the southern districts hoped that speedy completion of the doubling project would connect the region with other parts of Tamil Nadu and the country. It would also accelerate the social and economic development of Madurai, Virudhunagar, Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli and Kanniyakumari districts.

P Edward Jeni, general secretary, Kanniyakumari District Railway Users Association, said that even if Rs 250 crore to Rs 300 crore was allotted for each project a year, it would take another three to four years to get completed. “With hardly Rs 75 crore a year, it’s nearly impossible to finish the project in 10 years,” he said.

According to the budget allocation, the state has received Rs 2,548 crore this year as against Rs  2,287 crore allotted last year.

Though the state has received Rs 261 crore more compared to the previous year, the funds remain insufficient to complete the rail projects in the state.

Gauge conversion

The Union Budget has also allotted Rs 80 crore for one of the much delayed Madurai-Bodinayakkanur gauge conversion works. The section track was dismantled in 2010 and Theni district has since lost its train connectivity.

Central districts

Central districts of Tamil Nadu have received Rs 239.46 crore for ongoing gauge conversions and new lines. While 64.46 crore has been allotted under capital expenditure by the  railways, Rs 175 crore is to be sourced through extra budgetary resources.

The gauge conversion work between Tiruvarur and Pattukottai has just been finished, as part of the 149-km gauge conversion of Tiruvarur-Thiruthuraipoondi-Pattukottai-Aranthangi-Karaikudi section. Similarly, the gauge conversion works are being carried out in full swing in Thirutturaipoondi-Agasthiampalli section. In addition to this, funds are to be used for laying a new track between Mannarkudi-Pattukottai (34 km) and Thanjavur-Pattukottai (47 km). Laying of these new tracks has been pending for nearly 20 years.

New lines

Projects delayed for more than 10 years have also not received funding. The 91.5-km-long Erode-Dharapuram-Palani line was allotted Rs 10 lakh this year too. It was approved in 2005.

The other two projects in northern districts – Tindivanam-Gingee-Tiruvannamalai and Tindivanam-Nagari (179.2 km)  – have been allotted Rs 10 crore each. These projects were also inaugurated in 2007-2008. For laying a new line in the Chennai-Cuddalore section via Mahabalipuram (179.28 km), the railways has allotted Rs 100.10 crore. The Madurai-Tuticorin via Aruppukkottai (143.5 km) project has been allotted Rs 20 lakh, while the 36-km long Morappur-Dhamapuri line has received Rs 36 crore.

Chennai

For laying 60-km line connecting Sriperumbudur with Avadi via Guduvanchery and Irunkattukottai, estimated to cost Rs 839 crore, has got Rs 20 lakh.

Slow track

There has been scant progress in railway gauge conversion, which began in 2004, between Virudhunagar, Tamil Nadu, and Kollam, Kerala. Work between Virudhunagar and Rajapalayam, in Tamil Nadu, ended in 2007 and was extended to Shencottah in Tamil Nadu a year later. Conversion between Kollam and Shencottah was finished in part in the Kollam-Punalur stretch, in Kerala, in 2010. However, in mid-2010, train services between Shencottah and Punalur were suspended. After the issue was raised repeatedly, work was completed on the Shencottah-Edamon-Punalur section.

After the Chief Commissioner of Railway Safety, Southern Railway, inspected the broad gauge line between Shencottah and Edamon in January this year, the green signal was given for commencing services between Edamon and Shencottah. However, given the slow pace of work so far, one wonders whether people in the region will have to wait for long for a service between Punalur and Shencottah, despite it being a long-standing demand.

Train operated in Coimbatore-Podanur-Pollachi section had poor patronage because of timings. After gauge conversion, section remains underutilised

Now, this one is a clear case of precious funds going down the drain. The railway line between Podanur and Pollachi was converted from metre gauge to broad gauge by spending several crores. The project was implemented after a long wait as it ran into funds constraints, land acquisition litigations and a rocky terrain that made work execution difficult.

Now, after completion, it remains underutilised. The only passenger train that was introduced on this section is described as tokenism by the people as it lacks patronage because of the odd timings and was withdrawn from Jan. 14.

Train No. 06081/06082 operated in Coimbatore-Podanur-Pollachi section from July 15, 2017. It has had very poor patronage from the start because of the timings. The idle rakes of Train No. 56604/56605 (Shoranur-Coimbatore Fast Passenger) shared for the passenger train to Pollachi has now been withdrawn from Jan. 14 due to the introduction of a special train between Palani and Coimbatore via Pollachi, Kinathikkadavu and Podanur from on that day. The train chugs out of Coimbatore at 1.35 p.m. In the return direction, it leaves Pollachi at 3.05 p.m. and reaches Coimbatore at 4.15 p.m., with an average patronage of only 50 to 60 passengers across 11 coaches every day. As a consequence, the revenue is a measly Rs. 750 to Rs. 900 a trip, as against the operational cost of around Rs. 1.5 lakh.

Many regular commuters suggested that the patronage will increase if the train is operated during peak hours.

After the persistent demand from the people from different corners, the Salem Railway Division had introduced the Special Train No. 06709/06710 Coimbatore-Palani-Coimbatore from Jan. 14 for three months. Coaches of this train would run as Train No. 56709/56710 Palani-Madurai-Palani.

Even though the Salem Division had submitted a proposal to extend the services of Semmozhi Express up to Pollachi, it might not serve any purpose. Rail users say this is because the train would depart Pollachi late in the night and leave Coimbatore for Pollachi very early in the morning.

It was also suggested that the Fast Passenger (Train No. 56848) in Palghat town-Tiruchirappalli could be operated via Pollachi instead of Madukkarai (as a train is already being operated via Madukkarai) in the morning to the serve commuters from Pollachi. Similarly, another section that needs more services is the Coimbatore – Mettuppalayam route. Though many train services are operated to Mettupalayamm from Coimbatore, tourists look for late night trains and also on Sundays to reach Udhagamandalam, and the Vanabadrakaliamman temple and a water theme park on the way.

Over 54 percent railway tracks in Tamil Nadu yet to be electrified

With the Railway Ministry having decided not to announce any new train in its budget, rail passengers in the state are pinning their hopes on an increased fund allocation for speedy completion of ongoing and long-pending rail projects.

Despite being sixth most populous state in the country and one of the highly passenger revenue-generating states in the Indian Railways, rail infrastructure  in Tamil Nadu lags behind on several counts.  Particularly, in terms of electrification of tracks, the state has been ignored for several decades, running with only 46 per cent of electrified tracks on its total track length.

According to a report submitted by the Railway Ministry in Parliament, as on April 1, 2017, a total of 4,027-km-long track runs through the state, out of which 1,851-km track has been electrified. The electrification percentages in Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal, which are relatively larger than in Tamil Nadu with respect to population stood at 77.77 and 64.84 respectively, while smaller states like Kerala, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh have got over 75 per cent of tracks electrified.

“After fighting for three decades, we got the Madurai – Kanniyakumari line doubling works,” said Kanniyakumari Rail Users Association general secretary P Edward Jeni. He said  passengers would get the benefit of track improvements only if station infrastructure was developed to handle more trains.

Even though several sections were thrown open for traffic after gauge conversion and new tracks were introduced including Mandamadurai-Virudhunagar, Karur-Namakkal- Dindigul, Pollachi-Palakkad-Podanur and Vellore-Tiruvannamalai-Villupuram, the Railways could not operate more trains. It has been more than six months since the entire stretch of Chenai Egmore-Tiruchy was completely electrified with double lines, the Railway could not ply any additional train in the section.

“More funds should be allotted for improving terminals with additional stabling lines and pit lines at Tambaram, Madurai, Tiruchy, Virudhuangar, Tirunelveli, Rameswaram, Nagercoil, Salem and Tondiarpet,” said Naina Masilamani, member of Divisional Rail Users Consultative Committee. With the Railways replacing the old ICF coaches with LHB rakes, the Southern Railway should be allotted more coaches.

The ongoing works include doubling of tracks from Chennai to Kannaiyakumari, gauge conversion of Tiruvarur-Pattukottai-Aranthangi-Karaikudi section, electrification of Villupuram – Cuddalore Port – Mayiladuthurai – Thanjavur and Mayiladuthurai – Tiruvarur sections. In addition to this, Madurai-Bodi gauge conversion and new line-laying works between Tindivanm and Nagari via Walajah road have been delayed.

The Union budget is also expected to take a final call on the East Coast Railway line proposed to connect Kanniyakumari with Karaikudi via Tiruchendur. When contacted, official sources hoped that funds would be allotted for electrification and doubling works in Tamil Nadu. “We also expect fund allocation for modernising the ICF to manufacture the LHB coaches and replacing the Scherzer span of Pamban bridge,” said an official.

Infra boost needed

• Though several sections were thrown open for traffic after gauge conversion and new tracks were introduced, Railways could not operate more trains
• Even six months after the entire stretch of Chenai Egmore-Tiruchy was completely electrified with double lines, the Railway could not ply any additional train
• Madurai-Bodi gauge conversion, new line-laying works between Tindivanam and Nagari via Walajah road delayed
• Union budget is expected to take a final call on the East Coast Railway line

Those were the days of steam engines and meter gauge trains,” recalls a nostalgic Prof N Murali about his college days in the mid-1980s. “We used to reach our college, which was a good 25km away from Madurai, in 40 minutes, the time speeding moffusil buses now take to cover the same distance. And commuting for a month would cost less than Rs 10.” He was one of the many students, teachers and others who relied on the Madurai-Bodi train to commute before the section was dismantled for gauge conversion in 2011.

It was in 1984 that Madurai city took a giant leap in expansion from 51.82 sqkm to 147.99 sqkm, annexing most of town panchayats, municipalities and village panchayats on the outskirts. The city’s population expanded to 14 lakh during the 2011 census. Today, being a major shopping centre and the chief market for south Tamil Nadu, Madurai attracts roughly 5 lakh people who constitutes its daily floating population.

This has made the city lively, but has also made Madurai congested. “Madurai gets crowded by morning because people from across the region come for shopping and work here. Commuting by bus here is costly and cumbersome. An affordable suburban train service will make commuting easier for thousands of passengers,” said S P Jeyapragasam, president of the Tamil Nadu Foodgrains Merchants Association Limited.

Every day, hundreds of people from Madurai travel by rail to nearby towns for work. For A Vadivel, a telecommunications employee from Madurai working in Virudhunagar, taking the Mysore-Tuticorin Express at 7.40am is more economical and time-saving than taking a moffusil bus from Mattuthavani. He comes to Madurai junction from Thiruppalai, 15km from city, and gets into the train for another 40-minute journey. The other option is a two-hour bus trip to Virudhunagar.

“There are hundreds of commuters like me travelling to neighbouring towns for work. We fought tooth and nail with the railways to board reserved coaches with season tickets, since the unreserved coaches are cramped during peak hours,” he said, quite thrilled about the idea of a suburban rail network. “Imagining a network like in Chennai… even a quarter of its size will be of great help to regular commuters like us during peak hours,” he said.

At present, there are a few express and passenger trains on the Madurai-Virudhunagar & Madurai-Dindigul sections that are electrified. There are also passenger trains towards Rameswaram, covering the Madurai-Manamadurai section. Gauge conversion work has been going on in the Madurai-Usilampatti section of the Madurai-Bodi line for seven years. Considering that there is no line in the western direction, rail user forums have been demanding a new line from Madurai and Karaikudi via Melur.

Madurai MP R Gopalakrishnan said the new line project seemed to be shelved after a survey. “But we are not going to give up,” he said. The MP said a suburban train network is a great idea to ease traffic congestion in the city. “A 17-coach passenger train may reduce at least 20 buses on a route and save a lot of money on fuel and bring down damage to the environment. We will start pitching for this,” he said.

General secretary of the Railway Passengers Welfare Organisation in Madurai K Padmanathan said such a demand never struck rail users or elected representatives for long because the railways was taking its own time to even double the Chennai-Madurai line and has begun doubling the Madurai-Kanyakumari line only now. “Creating a suburban network is a mega project for a city like Madurai. It requires a lot of money and state government support in acquiring land. We may be able to take up the demand vigorously once the doubling work between Madurai and Kanyakumari is completed,” he added.

In the general budget 2018-19 various new railway line works and doubling project have been sanctioned over South Eastern Railway along with safety related and passenger amenity works. The detailed and special features of the budget follows:-

1. The important infrastructural capacity enhancement works like doubling there an increase of 6% in the Budget Grant as compared to last year. The grant has been increased from 932.40 Cr to Rs.988.50 Cr.
2. The important safety works related to level crossings and ROB/RUB, there is also an increase in the Budget Grant which has been raised from 285.35 Cr to 291.59 Cr.
3. The replacement of track there is an increase of 9.55% in the Budget Grant which has been raised from about 594.24 Cr to Rs.650.99 Crs.
4. There is a major improvement in the allotment for Passenger Amenities where the Grant has been increased by almost 41% raising it from Rs.6.10 Cr to Rs.66.40 Cr.
5. This time a new concept has been adopted in the Budget of clubbing important works over various Zones and sanctioning umbrella works for such major activities. Total 23 such umbrella works have been included in the current Budget which are relevant to South Eastern Railway. Some of the major items are as under;

No	Name of work	Total Cost
1	Construction of road over/under bridges in South Eastern Railway	10.00
2	Modernization of complete signalling system on Indian Railways	77912.00
3	Setting up of maintenance depots for train sets at various locations in Indian Railways	180.00
4	Upgradation of critical works centres of workshops over Indian Railways	500.00
5	Upgradation of freight/routine overhauling depots, train examination facilities, examination yards over Indian Railway	300.00
6	Upgradation of 100 coaching pit lines over Indian Railways	300.00
7	Construction of new quarters for staff/officers at various locations of Indian Railways (all Railway Zones)	165.00
8	South Eastern Railway – provision of foot over bridges and / or high level platforms at stations as per requirement.	300.00
9	Provision of escalators on railway platforms over Indian Railways (2589 Nos)	2589.00
10	Provision of 1000 lifts at 500 stations on Indian Railways	404.00
11	Provision of washable aprons over Indian Railways	200.00
12	Construction of boundary wall near stations & its approaches as measure to safeguard track and establishments avoiding encroachments over Indian Railways	500.00
13	Provision of Wi-Fi internet facility at 300 B-category stations over Indian Railways	115.00
14	Provision of CCTV system in 4038 coaches of premium trains (Rajdhani, Shatabdi & Duranto)	154.24
15	Provision of video surveillance system at 2140 F category stations (under Nirbhaya fund)	43.00
16	Provision of video surveillance system at 1105 stations (D & E category) of Eastern Region	254.21

The details of various works proposed to South Eastern Railway are as under:

NEW RAILWAY ELECTRIFICATION WORK INCLUDED IN BUDGET 2018-19

SN	State	Name of Project	Rly	Total RKM	State RKM	Total Cost (in Rs crore)	Proportionate Cost (in Rs crore)
1.	Jharkhand	Tatanagar-Badampahar	SER	89	42	70.08	33.07
2.	-do-	TKMs of YARD & LOOP LINES	SER	181	33.18	116.85	21.42
3.	Odisha	Rupsa-Bangriposi	SER	89	89	68.66	68.66
4.	-do-	Tatanagar-Badampahar	SER	89	47	70.08	37.01
5.	-do-	TKMs of YARD & LOOP LINES	SER	181	68.46	116.85	44.20
6.	West Bengal	Bankura-Mashagram	SER	118	118	92.8	92.80
7.	-do-	TKMs of YARD & LOOP LINES	SER	181	79	116.85	51.00

NEW RAILWAY ELECTRIFICATION WORK INCLUDED IN BUDGET 2018-19

SN	State	Name of Project	Rly	Tot. Rkm	State RKM	Total Cost (in Rs./Cr.)	Proportionate Cost (in Rs crore)
1.	Jharkhand	Tatanagar-Badampahar	SER	89	42	70.08	33.07
2.	-do-	TKMs of YARD & LOOP LINES	SER	181	33.18	116.85	21.42
3.	Odisha	Rupsa-Bangriposi	SER	89	89	68.66	68.66
4.	-do-	Tatanagar-Badampahar	SER	89	47	70.08	37.01
5.	-do-	TKMs of YARD & LOOP LINES	SER	181	68.46	116.85	44.20
6.	West Bengal	Bankura-Mashagram	SER	118	118	92.8	92.80
7.	-do-	TKMs of YARD & LOOP LINES	SER	181	79	116.85	51.00

Works proposed for inclusion in Budget 2018-19 subject to approval

SNo	Name of Project	Rly	Plan Head	Length (km)	Approx.Cost (Rs.in cr)	State-1	State-2
1.	Link line between Lodhma and Piska bypassing Hatia/Ranchi with Y connection.	SER	DL	17.2	428.65	Jharkhand
2.	Namkum-Kandra new line	SER	NL	106	2120	Jharkhand
3.	Provision of 3rd line between Chandil-Anara-Burnpur Section along with additional loop line at Nimdih, Urma, Tamna, Charra & Bagalia Stations (125KM)	SER	DL	125	1646.81	Jharkhand	West Bengal
4.	Proposal for doubling of line between Talgoria station to Bokaro N/Cabin section in Adra Division(Total 32+6=38 KM)	SER	DL	38	390.39	Jharkhand
5.	Purulia-Kotshila doubling	SER	DL	36	338	West Bengal