The Southern Railway, which had discontinued a slew of stoppages during the post-COVID-19 period, is now going the extra mile to restore or allow permanent additional stoppages for trains across the State. At least a dozen trains operating in the State have been provided new permanent stoppages at different stations in Kerala in the last few weeks.
The trains included Mangaluru Central-Kanyakumari-Mangaluru Central Parasuram Express at Vaikam Road from November 1, Nilambur Road-Thiruvananthapuram North Rajya Rani Express at Karunagapally from October 30, Thiruvananthapuram North-SMVT Bengaluru-Thiruvananthapuram North Humsafar Express at Kayamkulam Junction from November 1, Guruvayur-Madurai Junction Express at Perinad from October 22, Thiruvananthapuram Central-Kannur Jan Shatabdi Express at Changanassery from October 9, Nagercoil Junction-Kottayam Daily Express at Oachira from September 3, Ernad Express at Sasthamkotta from September 4, and Palarauvi Express in Irinjalakuda from September 8.
Further, Chennai Egmore-Guruvayur Express was allotted stops at Haripad, Chirayinkeezu, Kadakkavur, and Paravur recently. The majority of the special trains that pass through the Changanassery railway stations are now allotted stoppages. There are around 50 to 100 special train services during the festival season, and during the Sabarimala pilgrimage season it would be around 300 services, and all these trains are now provided stoppage at Changanassery.
Sources in the Railways said the reason for the spurt in allotting permanent additional stoppages is due to political pressure rather than operational reasons. The Southern Railway had discontinued a slew of stops for trains operating in the State during the post-pandemic period, citing low passenger patronage and revenue. The majority of the discontinued stops for trains were between midnight and 4 a.m. For instance, Irinjalakuda has lost the midnight stop of trains like the Malabar Express and the Mangalore Express, which have not been restored until now despite improvement in passenger numbers and revenue from the station.
As per the train halt policy, a stop is provided for different categories of trains based on the revenue generated from each station. The State also has reason to cheer ahead of the polls, as the third Vande Bharat service is allotted for Kerala from Ernakulam to Bengaluru, a long-pending legitimate demand of the passengers. The new service is expected to be inaugurated on November 7 virtually by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Additionally, the inauguration of nine Amrit Bharat stations in Kerala will also be held before the polls.
Published – November 01, 2025 07:05 pm IST
