More MEMU services will be launched: DRM

More MEMU services will start operating  in the Thiruvananthapuram Division within the next few months, said Divisional Railway Manager(DRM) Rajesh Agarwal.

Speaking to reporters at the sidelines of a safety seminar here on Sunday, Agarwal said that the Ernakulam-Thrissur and Kollam-Nagercoil MEMU services would commence its   services soon.  “However, the dates for the commencement of the services have not been specified,” he said.

Two more MEMU services, apart from the ones along the Ernakulam-Thrissur and Kollam-Nagercoil routes, will start operations well ahead of schedule.

 Pinpointing the lack of railway staff for the proposed operations at the MEMU shed constructed in Kollam, the DRM stated that staff from other divisions would be roped in soon.

‘Railway Gates to be Manned Soon’

The DRM stated that urgent measures are being taken to man the unmanned railway gates in the division. “The number of railway gates in Thiruvananthapuram division are twice the national average. We also have many unmanned gates which would be manned soon,” he said.

He admitted that the procedure for constructing the rail over-bridges and rail under-bridges are time consuming.

“There are many bottlenecks to be solved in this regard,” the DRM said.

A list containing 66 locations where there is a need to eliminate the unmanned level crossings has been submitted to the state government. “Modern technology should be adopted to prevent over-utilising resources such as land,” he said.

Currently, the doubling work in Kottayam and Alappuzha sectors is the main focus of the division.