RailEnquiry

Visakhapatnam: With the derailment of an empty goods train at a tunnel at Gorapur on the Andhra-Odisha border, the movement of goods trains on this track was stopped on December 18. To complete restoration works fast, the East Coast Railway has decided to cancel passenger services for two days. It is likely to be extended to two more days.

This season seems to be jinxed for the Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (APTDC) as tourists visit Araku, Ananthagiri, Borra caves and Tyda at this time every year. First it was a strike by tourism staff for more than a week in October and now the disruption of the Kothavalasa-Kirandul (KK) railway line due to the derailment of a goods train, the second one in a month.

While APTDC suffered more than Rs 50 lakh loss due to the cancellation of the lone Kirandul-Vizag passenger that carries tourists to Araku daily in November first week, it lost around Rs 1 crore during the strike by the staff in October. On an average 10,000 tourists visit these spots between October and February daily, which is considered the peak season.

The heavy rain in Vizag district in November triggered landslips at Ananthagiri blocking railway traffic for two days. Boulders and mud fell on the engine of a goods train derailing it.

According to statistics available with APTDC, around two lakh tourists visited Vizag in 2011-12 compared to 1.6 lakh in the corresponding period last year. 60 per cent of APTDC’s income comes from the resorts in Araku, Borra, Tyda and Anantagiri. If railway line is not restored in a few more days, the APTDC is likely to lose Rs 8 to Rs 10 lakh income every day.

“Though we are asking tourists to take the road to Araku and other destinations in Agency tracts, they prefer the train due to the tunnels,” said a senior APTDC official. They are expecting a fall in tourist flow next week due to the cancellation of the passenger train.