NEW SERVICE: People waving at the Bagalkot-bound express train at the Bijapur Railway Station on Saturday.

BIJAPUR: Much to the excitement of people in the region, train services began on the newly converted Bijapur-Bagalkot broad gauge line on Saturday. Services of the Yashwanthpur (Bangalore)-Bijapur tri-weekly express (6513/6514), and Sholapur-Bijapur passenger train (385/386) were extended up to Bagalkot.

A number of people particularly members of the Broad gauge Progress Monitoring Committee, a watchdog panel formed by citizens, gathered at the railway station here to receive the Yashwanthpur-Bijapur express that arrived at 9.40 a.m. They decorated the train and offered puja by breaking a coconut. Committee chief Vishwanath Bhavi welcomed the decision of the South Western Railway (SWR) to extend the train service up to Bagalkot. Mr. Bhavi, who successfully fought a public interest litigation (PIL) in the High Court over the issue in 2005, urged the SWR to expedite the remaining work on the Bagalkot-Gadag section.

He said the State Government, which had a cost-sharing agreement with the Indian Railways, should release its share of funds immediately. The State Government and the SWR were not keeping the undertakings they gave to the court during PIL hearing, he said and added that he was contemplating contempt of court proceedings against the two agencies. Stationmaster Srinivasmoorthy was the only railway official present at this programme. The train left for Bagalkot 10 a.m. instead of 9.45 a.m. but reached on time at 12.30 p.m. Committee members boarded the first ever broad gauge train to Bagalkot. They held a brief meeting at the railway station there and urged SWR authorities to introduce more trains in morning and evening hours. They asked railway authorities to halt the

tri-weekly express train (6513/6514) at Basavanabagewadi Station for people's benefit.. The Yashwanthpur-Bagalkot express (6513), which runs on Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays, leaves Yashwanthpur at 4.45 p.m. to reach Bagalkot at 12.30 p.m. the next day.

On the return journey, Bagalkot-Yashwanthpur (no. 6514), which runs on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays, departs from Bagalkot at 1.35 p.m. and arrives at Yashwanthpur at 10 a.m. the next day. The Sholapur-Bagalkot, the local passenger train (385) leaves Sholapur at 10.25 p.m. to reach Bagalkot at 1.40 a.m. On its return journey, the train (386) leaves Bagalkot at 4.05 a.m. and reach Sholapur at 9.30 a.m.

The service of local train, which runs daily, also commenced on Saturday.

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