Title - SWR: Rs. 1,434 crore earnings in first quarter

Plans to build 85 subways to close 82 level crossings

General Manager of South Western Railway (SWR) Ashok Kumar Mital has said that SWR recorded gross earnings of Rs. 4,185 crore in the last financial year.The railway zone carried 193 million passengers and transported 33.52 million tonnes of freight in 2012-13.In the first quarter of the current financial year 2013–14, SWR carried 10.37 million tonnes of freight and 64.28 million passengers, recording Rs. 1,434 crore as gross earnings.Delivering a speech at the zonal headquarters premises on Gadag Road here on Thursday, Mr. Mital said SWR endeavoured to provide comfortable rail travel to passengers by improving safety, passenger amenities, cleanliness, punctuality and staff behaviour.Mr. Mital said as part of its steps to eliminate level crossings, the zone had constructed 75 subways and closed 91 level crossings during 2012–13 and consequently bagged the Railway Board shield for “Level Crossings and Road Over Bridges (ROBs)/Road Under Bridges (RUBs) works ” for the year.

The zone had planned to build 85 subways and close 82 level crossings during the current financial year and already 14 subways had been completed and 21 level crossings closed at the end of July, he said.

He said that for improving passenger safety Integrated Security System(ISS) was being implemented at stations and work was underway at Bangalore City, Yeshwantpur and Mysore railway stations.

Mr. Mital said the modernisation of Hubli railway station was nearing completion.

President of SWR Women’s Welfare Organisation Rashmi Mital, senior railway officials S.C. Sahu, K. Harikrishnan, Vashishta Johri, M. Ramachandran, N.C. Sinha and Sanjeeb Halder participated in the programme.