Mangaluru (The Hindu): Dakshina Kannada Member of Parliament Nalin Kumar Kateel on Tuesday urged Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu to expedite the introduction of the Mangaluru-Bengaluru Central Kudla Express.

The train should be operated from Mangaluru Central itself and not Mangaluru Junction, he demanded.

Mr. Kateel met Mr. Prabhu at his office in New Delhi and submitted a memorandum. He also urged the Minister to operate the Mumbai CSTM-Mangaluru Junction Express from Mangaluru Central for the benefit of larger sections of people.

The Kannur-Mangaluru Junction-Byndoor Passenger too should be operated via Mangaluru Central and be extended to Madgaon in Goa, the MP demanded.

Tracing the history of Kudla Express, the MP said that the service was announced in the 2014-15 Railway Budget and was included in the timetable also. It was supposed to ply via Mysuru and Southern Railway had confirmed availability of platform and stabling line [for night parking].

With the opening of the Hassan-Bengaluru new railway line, the South Western Railway has now decided to operate the train via the new line thereby drastically reducing journey hours and distance.

Mr. Kateel said that the Southern Railway appears to have not given concurrence to the changes in the schedule of Kudla Express and also had been suggesting to operate the train from Mangaluru Junction, which is located away from the city with inadequate public transport facilities.

Operating services from Mangaluru Junction would be disadvantageous to the public, he said.

The MP urged Mr. Prabhu to ensure that the train operates from Mangaluru Central itself via the newly commissioned route. Its name, Kudla Express, also should not be changed, he said.

Mr. Kateel asked Mr. Prabhu to direct Southern Railway to expeditiously complete work on an additional platform at Mangaluru Central and line doubling between Netravathi Cabin and Mangaluru Central to facilitate operation of more trains.