Title - Railways open for discussions

Hinting an approval to the implementation of CRS, Sudhanshu Mani, DRM of South Western Railway, Bangalore, said the railway was open to discussions on the report before finalising it.“RITES, the engineering consultancy company, is working on the changes suggested for the report, and will submit it to the Department of Urban Land Transport (DULT). Following that, a discussion will be held, and the proposal will be forwarded to the state government and railway board,” Mani said. Commenting on the delay before the project gained momentum, Mani said it was due to the lack of a framework for working conditions. “However, we can now take it forward,” he added. The railway will have to accommodate stations and commuter hubs, besides shifting the maintenance division to Byappanahalli. He said the railway was capable of managing the CRS on its own. Commenting on the capacity addition required to run CRS, Mani said only Phase 2 and 3 would require land acquisition, and Phase 1 could be operated on existing rakes. “We can run upto 40 services with four new rakes. Land acquisition can be discussed as and when Phase 2 and 3 are ready,” he said. The DULT has returned the report complied by the RITES and has directed to re-work on sections related to investment and purchase of rakes.