The Railways has decided to go ahead with the proposed pit line work at Palakkad Town Railway Station here. The Railways had sanctioned ₹27 crore for the second phase of the pit line. The Railway Board has sanctioned a total ₹46 crore for the project.
V.K. Sreekandan, MP, said here on Friday that the pit line would be the fulfillment of a long-cherished dream for the Palakkad Railway Division. He said the pit line would be crucial for the development of the rail transport in Kerala.
A pit line is a washing line with open dumping pit throughout the track at the base. The pit line is used for checking and repairing of coach base parts. It is also used to drain out sewage water from coaches.
Mr. Sreekandan said the Railways agreed to execute the project after persistent demands that he made. He has been pressing the Railways to implement the project since July 2019. He said the project was delayed because of COVID-19.
Mr. Sreekandan said that the project would be executed in a year. Once the pit line is set up, new long-distance trains can start from and terminate in Palakkad.
In Kerala, only Thiruvananthapuram and Ernakulam have pit lines. According to Mr. Sreekandan, all divisional headquarters have pit lines. “Being the divisional headquarters, Palakkad ought to have had it long back,” he said.
The BJP hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for sanctioning ₹46 crore for the pit line. BJP district president K.M. Haridas said here on Friday that more trains could be generated from Palakkad Town in future.
He said that the pit line was a result a project proposal made by Palakkad Railway Division in 2014-15. He said the Congress Cabinet Ministers from Kerala could not do anything to materialise a coach factory that the UPA government had sanctioned. He said the BJP would hold talks with the Railway authorities to expedite the execution of the pit line project.
