Electric trains to Mysuru may not run for now

Team Udayavani, Mar 13, 2018, 11:06 AM IST

Mysuru: It has been almost a month since Prime Minister Narendra Modi introduced the electrification works of Bengaluru-Mysuru double line. But, because of postponement in power supply railways won’t have the capacity to run electric trains for another half a year.

The state government and the railroads spent Rs 218 crore for electrification work. Nonetheless, the Yeliyur sub-station, which needs to supply energy to half of the 138-km line in Mysuru and Mandya area, is yet to be associated with the Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited’s (KPTCL) power grid.

KPTCL MD Jawaid Akhtar told the media “Railroad authorities came to us in January looking for energy to Yeliyur sub-station with a heap of 5000 kVA. Tenders for drawing lines from Tubinakere Industrial Area to the sub-station have been finished and the letter of intent (LoI) will be given to the contractual worker within a day or two,”

Sources in the Railways said they at first intended to complete the work themselves before moving toward KPTCL. An authority said the modern zone is arranged about 3 km far from Yeliyur sub-station and the power line needs to pass through farming fields.

“There were a few issues with agriculturists, which have been settled as of late. We trust that the work will be finished within half a year after the contractual worker gets LoI,” the authority said. The South Western Railway, which had plans to supplant diesel trains with electric ones for no less than six trains by the primary quarter of 2018, has now put off the plans. At present, just Shatabdi Express (Daily), Darbhanga (Weekly) and Chennai-Mysuru Weekly Express, keep running with electric train as powering trains from Bidadi sub-station, bringing about high wastage.

A regular train requires around 700 litres of diesel for one-path trip between Mysuru and Bengaluru, the course that sees a normal of 22 trains running toward every path. Railroads trusts that charge will diminish yearly utilization by 1.2 crore litres, when it acquires the fuel by paying Rs 57.20 for each liter. Change of the considerable number of trains is required to spare Rs 20 crore yearly.

Railroad extremist T P Lokesh said that the delay demonstrates the absence of anticipating the piece of rail lines. “For a work executed in the course of the most recent two years, electrification is not properly planned. It demonstrates the carelessness of railroad authorities. How can they proclaim work as finished when a sub-station isn’t associated with the grid,” he inquired.