Twenty-two years after Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd., (KRCL), a joint venture of Railways, and the Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka and Kerala governments operated the first train on its network, the people of coastal Karnataka are wondering whether the corporation has served the interests of the State.
The corporation has not provided stabling or maintenance lines at any of its stations along 270 km odd network in Karnataka thereby denying starting of any train from the coast other than Southern Railway’s Mangaluru. Worse, KRCL has no plans to construct maintenance lines in Karnataka, the corporation had stated in a reply to an RTI query recently.
Not exclusively for others
Karwar-based Rajeev Gaonkar, vice-president, West Coast Rail Yatri Abhivrddhi Sangha, who is also a member of Konkan Railway Users’ Consultative Committee, said people in Karnataka did not part with lands just for exclusive operation of trains to other States.
Of the nearly 40 trains operating on KR network through Karnataka, only seven cater to the State while the rest connect the north of the country with Kerala, he noted. “It is unfortunate that we have to fight for every facility as KR has always been in denial mode.”
Why not in Karnataka
During the recent KRUCC meeting, Mr. Gaonkar raised several issues, including non-availability of maintenance lines in Karnataka. Besides being unable to operate special trains for lack of infrastructure, KRCL is not accommodating any new train, he said. When it has built maintenance facilities in Goa and Maharashtra, similar facilities were expected in Karnataka too.
He demanded that KRCL build maintenance facilities at Karwar and Ankola or Bhatkal not only to facilitate starting of new trains, but also to extend some trains terminating at Mangaluru.
Special trains
Ruing KRCL apathy towards Karnataka, rail activist Gautam Shetty, from Bengaluru, said that since the corporation refused to stable the Bengaluru-Karwar Deepavali special trains for a couple of days at Karwar — operated by the South Western Railway last year — SWR had to run the empty rake back to Bengaluru incurring huge losses. The people of the State would not have suffered if KRCL had maintenance and stabling facilities along its network in Karnataka, he said. The Railways has a 52% stake in KRCL, while Maharashtra holds 21%, Goa and Kerala 6% each, and Karnataka holds 15% stake.
Not a single train from KR
Rajeev Gaonkar, member, KRUCC, said KRCL has not introduced even a single train to and from Karnataka in the last 22 years.
While the Mangaluru-Madgaon-Mangaluru Passenger was the result of regularising track-testing train during the construction period, the Mumbai LTT-Mangaluru-Mumbai LTT Matsyagandha Express was the one flagged off by then Railway Minister Nitish Kumar during the inauguration of the line. The Mumbai CSMT-Mangaluru Junction-Mumbai CSMT was the one that got extended after much fight from Karwar, he said.
KRCL did not introduce trains connecting coastal Karnataka with other parts of the country and the State, Mr. Gaonkar noted. The Bengaluru-Karwar overnight express was the result of legal battle fought by West Coast Rail Yatri Abhivriddhi Sangha, of which he is the VP, he added.
