Mangaluru (The Hindu): The Railways on Wednesday named the Yeshwantpur-Mangaluru Junction-Yeshwantpur Tri-Weekly Express as Gomateshwara Express going against its normal practice of naming trains after their originating places/personalities.

Residents of coastal Karnataka as well as the former Railway Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda, who had named the train as Kudla Express while announcing it in the 2014-15 budget, were not happy with the decision.

Sources in the South Western Railway indicated that it was purely done as per the words of Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu. The South Western Railway was aware that Mr. Sadananda Gowda had named it Kudla Express (Mangaluru is called Kudla in the local Tulu language). The zone was also aware that people used to call the train as Kudla Express even before its introduction on April 9.

During the inauguration of the newly commissioned Bengaluru-Hassan line at Yeshwantpur on March 26, the former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda had urged Mr. Suresh Prabhu to name Mangaluru Express as Gomateshwara Express and Hassan Intercity Express as Kalabhairava Express. Mr. Prabhu had promised to name them accordingly.

Disappointed

Anil Hegde, Advisor of the West Coast Rail Yatri Abhivriddhi Sangha, told The Hindu that the Railway’s decision has disappointed residents of coastal Karnataka. No one is against naming a train after Gomateshwara, but the name would not gel with Mangaluru Express, he said and urged the Railways to rename the train as Kudla Express.

Mr. Hegde said that the coastal people were already miffed with Railway’s attitude of not operating the train as a daily train from Mangaluru Central Station (within the city). Naming it as Gomateshwara Express has only aggravated their agony, he said.

Mr. Sadananda Gowda was surprised at the decision to name the train as Gomateshwara Express, initially saying that it must be the Yeshwantpur-Hassan Intercity Express. When told that the name was for Mangaluru Express, Mr. Sadananda Gowda told The Hindu that he would talk to the Railway Minister and urge him to rename the train as Kudla Express.