RailEnquiry

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs formally notified upgrading ‘Kurnool Town’ railway station to ‘Kurnool City’. The Union Ministry directed the State government on Tuesday to issue a notification in the Gazette to the effect and send the copies to Home Affairs Ministry, Surveyor General of India, Dehradun; Director, AP Spatial Data Centre, Hyderabad; Director of Printing, Dehradun and Director Traffic Commercial at Rail Bhavan, New Delhi.The R&B officials would inspect the railway station and initiate steps for notification of the elevation. Deputy Minister for Railways Kotla Jayasuryaprakasa Reddy, who was behind the initiative, told The Hindu from New Delhi that the upgrading of the station was a long-pending demand.Despite the willingness of the railways to develop the station, much could not be done due to the statutory hurdle. Only the Ministry of Home Affairs was authorised to make changes. The elevation would help the railways to enhance the passenger quota, increase the duration of stops for various long-distance trains and sanction stops for new trains at Kurnool. Also, it facilitates to name a train as inter-city express. Mr. Reddy said the railway station could have been elevated long ago, but due to lack of proper pursuance, the subject remained unattended. He said steps were being taken for launching of an inter-city express soon between Kurnool and Secunderabad and start works on railway wagon workshop. He said railway facilities would be expanded soon in Kurnool and other places.