Udupi(The Hindu): The Udupi Railway Yatri Sangha has urged the Western Railway to introduce a weekly train from Bandra Terminus in Mumbai to Mangaluru, via Vasai Road Junction, for the benefit of people living in the three coastal districts of Karnataka.
In a press release issued here, R.L. Dias, president of the Udupi Railway Yatri Sangha, said that a large number of people from Udupi, Dakshina Kannada and Uttara Kannada districts were either employed or had business establishments at the 16 suburban railway stations between Dadar and Naigaon in Mumbai on the Western Railway section. These people had to struggle to return to their native places as there were only two trains starting from Lokamanya Tilak Terminus and Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Mumbai. Both these stations were at the southern end of Mumbai.
It would take nearly one-and-a-half to two hours to reach these stations through the busy highway by autorickshaw or taxi.
Hence, for the benefit of these people living on the Western Railway section of Mumbai, the sangha had been urging the Western Railway to start a weekly train from Bandra Terminus to Mangaluru, via Vasai Road Junction since 2006.
To this request, the Western Railway had replied that due to mail/express and suburban trains, there was no extra track and therefore, the request to start a train from Bandra Terminus to Mangaluru was not feasible.
Later, an extra track was laid from Borivali to Vasai Road Junction. Besides, the Western Railway also ran two special trains — Bandra Terminus - Vasai Road - Madgaon (bi-weekly) and Bandra Terminus-Vasai Road-Madgaon (tri-weekly) during Ganesh and Onam festivals, this year. When the Western Railway rejected the sangha’s demand how was it possible for it to run the two special trains upto Madgaon?, he asked.
