The Hindu : Karnataka News : Railway Budget: Chamarajanagar misses the `train'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jul 08, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka - Others

Railway Budget: Chamarajanagar misses the `train'

By Our Correspondent

CHAMARAJANAGAR, JULY 7. The people of Chamarajanagar are disappointed with the Railway Budget for 2004-05 presented on Tuesday by the Railway Minister, Lalu Prasad, as it is silent on the Chamarajanagar-Mettupalyam railway line.

The project is likely to help Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala.

It is said that while inaugurating the Chamarajanagar railway line on August 22, 1926, Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV had hoped that the line would be extended up to Mettupalyam.

After Independence, the Union Government prepared a detailed plan to begin work on six railway lines, including the Chamarajanagar-Mettupalyam line. H.C. Dasappa, who was the then Railway Minister, even ordered a survey in 1948. After this, the project did not see much progress.

Gauge conversion

Gauge-conversion work on the Mysore-Chamarajanagar line is in progress. It is said that 1,000 pass holders commute every day between Chamarajanagar and Mysore and, of them, 300 are from Chamarajanagar. Once the project is completed, it will immensely help the people of Chamarajanagar.

But one of the long-standing demands of the people is that the gauge-conversion work should be extended up to Mettupalyam.

The Chamarajanagar-Mettupalyam line is considered crucial as it links North India with South India. The entire railway line from North India to South India is said to have been converted into broadguage, except the 140-km stretch between Chamarajanagar and Mettupalyam, which is known locally as the "missing link."

At present, the Jolarpet line links North India and South India.

The Chamarajanagar-Mettupalyam line is considered a better alternative as it is likely to reduce the travelling distance.

The Chamarajanagar-Mettupalyam line will reduce the distance between Bangalore and Coimbatore by 150 km.

Also, the distance between Kerala and Delhi is likely to come down by 100 km once the project is completed.

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