Title - Incessant rain takes a toll on K-K line

The traffic on Kothavalasa – Kirandul (K-K) railway line, the lifeline for people of Jagdalpur and for movement of iron ore, has come to a grinding halt and track restoration work has been taken up on a war-footing.The track is expected to be partially restored by Tuesday night and normal operations will take another four days.Though restoration work was in full swing on Monday, officials had a tough time in removing the impediments to make way for lorries to approach the affected area.Two landslips have occurred in just three days between Sivalingapuram and Boddavara Railway stations and another landslip on the Tyda – Simidapalli Section resulted in the derailment of two locomotives and two wagons on Sunday.Traffic on the K-K line has come to a standstill due to washing away of the track near Boddavara Railway Station. About seven-metre long track and the soil underneath it, up to a depth of about six metres, were washed away by flash floods from the hills late on Saturday night.The water which gushed from the hill stream badly damaged an electrical Sub Station. Though a disaster in itself it minimised further damage as the traction power supply snapped and trains on the section stopped in their tracks. Divisional Railway Manager Anil Kumar, Additional Divisional Railway Manager C. Madhusudhana Rao, Chief Track Engineer Lal Das and Electrical Distribution Engineer Jain (both from East Coast Railway Headquarters in Bhubaneswar) are camping at the site and coordinating the work.

“We hope to restore the main line by Tuesday night and normal operations by November 9. We have deployed 15 trucks to carry earth and 120 wagon loads of sinter are being requisitioned from the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant for filling up the crater under the track,” Mr. Madhusudhana Rao told The Hindu.

“Though landslips had occurred on this section in the past, this is the first time that the soil was washed away at this spot. There is a danger of its recurrence and we have plans to construct a bridge in future. Pipes will be laid to ensure flow of rain water as a temporary measure,” he said.