Kudos to Railways, Much awaited development

(The Hindu dt 30-4-2014)

(Malayala Manorama Kochi Metro dt 29-4-2014)

Allow stop for AC Express

(Mathrubhumi Palakkad dt 30-4-2014. Contributed by Kumar Easwaran from Palakkad)

(Malayala Manorama Palakkad dt 29-4-2014)

Stop cursing, thank Railways!

Once Doubling Work Between Ernakulam Town Station & Kathrikadavu Ends, The Regular 10-Minute Delay Caused In This Stretch Will Cease

Thrissur: Passengers, who have strolled aimlessly along crowded platforms for hours awaiting the arrival of their train this week, can look forward to some respite by Monday night when the track-doubling work between Ernakulam Town railway station and Kathrikadavu ends. What’s more, travel time will be reduced by 10 minutes on this stretch next week. 
    For years, the doubling work of the track between Ernakulam Town station and Kathrikadavu waskepton hold.Hence, alltrainshadtobedetained near theKathrikadavuBridgefor atleast10 minutes to get signal clearance every time. A state where track occupancy overshot 100% 10 years ago, this 1.8 km stretch was a bottleneck for both railways and passengers. 
    Hence, starting the doubling work at one of the busiest stretches in the state was not an easy task. “At least 120 workers under civil, electrical and signal and telecommunications departments are on duty at a time to complete the work started on April 14. Our deadline is April 29,” said a senior officer the Thiruvananthapuram railway division. 
    When contacted, Ernakulam area manager of Southern Railway PL Ashok Kumar said all works including track-laying, sleeper-laying, track-joining andoverheadwirestringing –exceptinspection of electricity transmission – are completely done by hand. “Since the signal system is also being upgraded we are currently navigating trains without automatic signal system and track clamping facilities. The unexpected showers did hamper our work, but we are still on schedule to finish things by Monday night,” he said. 
    Trains are cleared manually along this route and station masters at Ernakulam Junction and Town stations hand over a memo to the loco pilot that allows him to pass through the Kathrikadavu stretch. The loco pilot has to acknowledge the memo in writing. Employees have been deployed at each point (where tracks are diverted) to set, clamp and padlock the track every time a train passes through. “Everything has to be tested before, during and after a train crosses the stretch,” Kumar said. 
    Trains will gain a time advantage of 15 minutes between Ernakulam and Kottayam once the doubling work between Piravom Road-Mulanthuruthy is completed by May 31. However, the change in timetable will be seen next year when Railways reworks its timetable. 
    Even members of the railway passengers associations in the area understand the importance of the work taken up by railways. “Doubling of this line was inevitable. This is definitely a tedious job and we believe railways can complete the work within the stipulated time. They have also made elaborate arrangements to inform passengers in advance about the time change and delay of trains through media,” said P Krishnakumar, general secretary, Thrissur Railway Passengers Association. 

(Shyam PV, Times of India dt 27-4-2014)

RRTS for Keralam

(The Hindu dt 24-4-2014)

(Mathrubhumi dt 24-4-2014)

(Malayala Manorama Metro Thiruvananthapuram dt 24-4-2014)

Divisional statistics for 2013-14

(The Hindu dt 22-4-2014)

(Malayala Manorama dt 24-4-2014)

Due recognition for a deserving official

(Madhyamam dt 17-4-2014)

(Mathrubhumi dt 17-4-2014)

(Mangalam dt 17-4-2014)

(Deshabhimani dt 17-4-2014)

Move in the right direction

(Mathrubhumi dt 22-4-2014)

(Malayala Manorama dt 21-4-2014)

(Malayala Manorama dt 14-4-2014)

(Madhyamam dt 14-4-2014)

(Mathrubhumi dt 14-4-2014)

(The Hindu dt 13-4-2014)

Summer Specials

(The Hindu dt 12-4-2014)

Premium Special Train with Dynamic Pricing

(The Hindu dt 12-4-2014)

Contract staff to issue rail tickets

Unreserved tickets will soon be issued to commuters by Station Ticket Booking Sewaks (STBS) in 40 E-category stations across the State as part of exempting stationmasters from ticketing duties. With this, stationmasters in 22 stations in Thiruvananthapuram Railway Division and 18 in Palakkad Division would be able to concentrate more on operational duties, sources said.

The decision comes at a time when stationmasters’ workload had reportedly been causing safety concerns. Stationmasters had been complaining that they were forced to issue tickets through unreserved ticketing system to shore up revenue and to make bookings easier.

Sources told The Hindu that STBS would be appointed on contract to issue unreserved tickets through computerised ticketing system. The STBS would have the authority to issue non-commercial, unreserved tickets, excluding platform and season tickets, and senior citizen concession tickets. All other concession tickets requiring proof could be issued only when permitted by the stationmaster. They would issue cash tickets alone.

Railways would appoint one STBS per station. If needed, the STBS could nominate one or more persons. The STBS should be above 18 years of age, a resident in the area, and should have passed at least Class 10. The Commercial Wing of Railways had invited bids for appointing STBS. Those selected would need to remit a refundable security deposit of Rs.5,000 and furnish a bank guarantee of Rs.20,000. On completion or termination of contract, pending dues would be adjusted against the deposit.

The cost of hardware and software would be borne by Railways. Cash from ticket sale would have to be deposited with the stationmaster at the end of the shift. For the STBS, the income would be the commission, paid monthly, on net sales.

Stations

Aralvaimozhi, Cheppad, Chingavanam, Ettumanur, Edappally, Kalamassery, Karukutty, Kumbalam, Kurupanthara, Mararikulam, Mayyanad, Mulangunnathukavu, Mulanthuruthi, Murukkumpuzha, Nemom, Ochira, Ollur, Perinad, Pudukad, Sengulam, Vaikom road, and Vallathol Nagar in Thiruvananthapuram Division would get STBS. In Palakkad Division, the stations are Ullal, Kannur South, Etakkot, Tikkoli, Kadalundy, Tirunavaya, Pallipuram, Karakad, Mannanur, Lakkiti, Mankara, Parli, Kanjikode, Walayar, Ettimadai, Madukarai, West Hill, and Kallayi stations.
(The Hindu dt 8-4-2014)