No new trains for Mysore division

The Railway Budget for 2014-15 has not brought cheer to stakeholders in Mysore division as no new trains or projects were allocated in the budget. However, the only solace is the announcement of high-speed trains on the Mysore-Bangalore-Chennai sector. The budget has also cleared confusion on the fate of Mysore-Madikeri railway line and the government intends to implement it.

Railway Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda, who tabled the budget in Parliament on Tuesday, announced that the speed of trains would be increased to 160-200 kmph on select sectors across the country, including the Mysore-Bangalore-Chennai sector.

The high-speed trains will be on the line of the bullet trains announced for Mumbai-Ahmedabad sector, and will require new infrastructure. Hence, the Minister said efforts would be made to enhance the speed of existing trains by upgrading the present infrastructure. When implemented, it will significantly reduce travel time between Mysore and Bangalore. At present, it takes up to 3 hours to cover the distance of 139 km between the two cities.

However, sources in the Railways pointed out that even the 160-200 kmph speed can be achieved only between Bangalore and Chennai, given the terrain. The existing track curvature on the Mysore-Bangalore sector does not allow for trains to run in speeds higher than 110 kmph.

To exceed this limit, the track bed has to be strengthened, the curvature of the track reduced at various places and long stretches of landscape barricaded. In addition to this, existing tracks will have to be replaced with high-density rails of 60 kg per meter in lieu of the existing 52 kg per meter rails.

The Mysore-Madikeri railway line – which was kept in abeyance due to perceived commercial unviability – will be taken up and the Minister announced that the State government has agreed to share the cost of the project. “This will provide rail connectivity to important tourist destinations in Kodagu,” said Mr. Gowda.

The budget also saw the announcement of Bangalore–Mangalore Express service daily and Bangalore–Shimoga Express as a bi-weekly train. These two services will benefit passengers in Mysore division.

In the interim budget presented in February, a biweekly express train connecting Mysore with Varanasi was announced but this is yet to be commissioned.