RailEnquiry

‘Problems faced by railway passengers can be resolved at the meeting’ The Karnataka Development Forum has urged Minister of State for Railways K.H. Muniyappa to convene a meeting of zonal Railway general managers of the southern region here.In a letter to Mr. Muniyappa, forum president Patil Puttappa explained the significance of such a meeting.A meeting of general managers of the Southern Railway (Chennai), South Central Railway (Secunderabad), South Western Railway (Hubli), Western Railways (Mumbai), and the Konkan Railway Corporation (zonal headquarters Southern Part) should be convened to resolve issues pertaining to demands made by railway passengers.Those issues could only be solved through a coordinated effort by the railway zones, the meeting was essential, he said in the release.Mr. Puttappa spoke about a direct train from Gulbarga to Hubli, which had to go to Gulbarga via Hutagi from Hubli. To resolve this issue, the Central Railway General Manager should be present at the meeting, as it fell under his jurisdiction.Since the zonal headquarters was in Hubli, it would be apt if the inter-zonal meeting was conducted here itself, Mr. Puttapa said.In a separate letter sent to Mr. Muniyappa, Mr. Puttappa mentioned a section of the metre gauge line on the Hubli division, from Alnavar to Dandeli on the Hubli-Londa Railway, which he said had played a key role in passenger service, as well as logistics, for the industrial town of Dandeli.

He pointed out that when the main line was converted to broad-gauge during 1995-96, the section from Alnavar to Dandeli was left out. Because of the West Coast Paper Mills, There were nearly one lakh people residing in surrounding areas. There should be a rail connection to help them connect with the rest of the country, he said.