The Hindu : State Govt. can't share cost of Egmore-Central rail link

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jan 07, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Tamil Nadu

State Govt. can't share cost of Egmore-Central rail link

By S. Vydhianathan

CHENNAI Jan. 6. The State Government has expressed its inability to share the cost of a proposed rail link between Chennai Central and Egmore planned by the Southern Railway.

The Government felt that under the present circumstances of financial crunch it was difficult to share 50 per cent cost of the Rs 94-crore project. It made clear that its commitment to part-fund the suburban gauge conversion was confined to the Chengalpattu - Tambaram - Beach section and that the proposed rail link should not be included in the existing project.

However, the State would donate 7,300 square metres of poromboke land near the Central jail if the railway executed the project with its own funds.

In fact, the Southern Railway earlier planned to organise the foundation laying ceremony for the project here today. But it was postponed at the last-minute, reportedly after the State Government conveyed its decision to the railway.

Listing the reasons for the State Government not financing the project, its officials here said that first of all, the link would not help to improve the city infrastructure in any way. As it was coming up on an elevated track, a ramp would have to be provided from a point beyond Central, near the Basin Bridge station. If it was so, the link would be virtually between Basin Bridge and Egmore, and not between Central and Egmore.

Moreover, with the unigauge project being implemented throughout the country, there was no need for the proposed link. The unigauge system, the officials said, would help the Railways operate trains from any station in the southernmost part to any station in the north, using the diamond junction comprising Vysarpadi (Jeeva), Korrukupet, Washermanpet and Basin Bridge, and passing through Chennai Beach.

The link project would not serve any purpose for long distance passengers also, as they would prefer to alight either at Egmore or Central and take their own mode of transport instead of waiting for EMU services to reach either station.

Again, if the project came through, it would severely affect any future plan to decongest the junction opposite Central. Already there was a proposal to form an elevated highway from the Chennai port to Koyambedu along EVR Salai with Malaysian help. If the Southern Railway was allowed to go ahead with the project, it would pose problems in designing the highway, the officials said.

Instead of sinking money in this project, they said, the Southern Railway could think of laying additional lines in the Tiruvallur-Arakkonam section, doubling of the Villupuram - Madurai section, where the passenger traffic had increased phenomenally, and providing additional funds for the Villupuram - Thanjavur section, which needed more attention and resources.

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