Title - The Hindu : Today's Paper News : State up against new rail divisions

Move to create railway divisions in Tirunelveli, Mangalore

Aryadan Mohammed writes to Union Railway Minister-------------------
The move to further bifurcate Thiruvananthapuram and Palakkad railway divisions to create new railway divisions in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka has been opposed by the State as it will ruin the prospects of forming an exclusive peninsular railway zone.The State intervention comes in the wake of the pressure being exerted by passenger associations and political parties to create new railway divisions in Tirunelveli and Mangalore by carving out areas in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka now under the jurisdiction of Thiruvananthapuram and Palakkad divisions.The shifting of long-distance Express trains bound for Thiruvananthapuram Central to adjoining Kanyakumary citing lack of space for maintenance has also forced the government to act as the groundwork for the railway budget has commenced.

Coach factory: “Such a move would be detrimental to the proper development of railway facilities and the implementation of prestigious projects like the rail coach factory at Palakkad,” Minister in charge of Railways Aryadan Mohammed has pointed out in a letter to Union Minister for Railways Pawan Kumar Bansal.

The creation of the Peninsular Railway Zone by including Thiruvananthapuram and Palakkad railway divisions and the Konkan Railway is a long-pending demand of the State. The formation of the Salem division has already weakened the Palakkad division.

Mr. Mohammed, in the letter, has reminded that the then Union Minister for Railways Dinesh Trivedi had stated in September last that the demand for setting up an exclusive railway zone was under the consideration of the Centre.

Mr. Mohammed has urged Mr. Bansal to keep the two railway divisions in the State intact and expedite the formation of a separate railway zone for Kerala.

Political situation

According to highly placed sources in Railways, the conditions are conducive for carving out two new railway divisions with Mr. Bansal from the Congress becoming the Railway Minister and the political situation favourable in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. With Kerala getting more representation in the Union Cabinet, the chances of the State getting the exclusive zone, a compromise formula worked out when the Salem division was created amidst opposition from all quarters, are also high.

Further bifurcation of the Thiruvananthapuram and Palakkad divisions purely on linguistic basis is against the principles followed by Railways. Kerala lost 623 km from the Palakkad division when the Salem division was created in 2007.