Mangalore: Passenger Train to Bangalore Still a Mirage
By Melka Miyar - Pics - Arun Uppinagady
(Report coordinated by Richie Lasrado)
- The pathetic story of a lethargic public, easy-going and good-for-nothing elected representatives and unscrupulous business lobbies...
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Mangalore, May 23: Air and rail have always been the two basic modes of transport for decades, why, they can even be termed basic rights. And these, ironically, are the facilities, which the people of Mangalore have to fight for at various stages.
First it was the international flight to Mangalore. There were several promises and an umpteen number of deadlines. However, finally, the untiring efforts by activists and 'blessings' of ministers ensured that the dream was realized. The Dubai–mangalore flight landed and it paved the way for flights from other stations.
The other need is the railway line for several years. There have been vociferous pleas from regular commuters for several years for the resumption of Mangalore-Bangalore passenger service, which was discontinued over ten years ago. Over the past three months, about a dozen dates were announced but all of them got promptly 'derailed'.
Whose lobby is behind it and who has to suffer because of it?
Are our so-called ministers and elected representatives sleeping?
The railway track between Sakleshpur and Mangalore is ready in broad-gauge format now, say officials. But why hasn't the passenger service been resumed, although goods trains, much bigger and heavier than passenger trains, are running without any problems? There seems to be no answer.
Mangalore has the maximum connectivity facilities than any other district headquarters in the state. It is one of only few cities connected by air, rail, water and road transport. The city has an international airport as well as a modern, all-weather port. But, paradoxically, it lacks a good transportation facility with the state capital.
The national highway 48, which connects Mangalore and Bangalore, is never free from lunar crater-like potholes. The Shiradi ghat stretch on this highway is a virtual nightmare for vehicle drivers. On the other hand, not a day passes without accidents taking place on this part of the road.
Sadashiva, earlier assistant road transport officer (ARTO) of Puttur sub division, had identified 13 dangerous spots in the National Highway 48 under his jurisdiction.
He had also written to the National Highway authorities to take some steps to prevent accidents. But no step has been taken by the National Highway authorities.
The bullet tankers carrying gas and the lorries carrying timber and iron have worsened the condition of the road and proved hazardous to other vehicles plying on this highway.
But one can't take recourse to relief by travelling by train, for the simple reason that the railway route between Bangalore and Mangalore has not yet been re-introduced.
The rails between Mangalore and Sakleshpur were dismantled in 1996 for the purpose of conversion to broad-gauge. Interestingly, the rails were not laid aside for re-assembly, but they mysteriously vanished from the tracks, lock, stock and barrel.
It was being said in reliable circles that the rails had been taken away to Hassan, an adjoining district, which has powerful, go-getter politicians, whereas Dakshina Kannada has to be content with politicians and elected representatives who are only specialized in raising petty issues and diverting people's attention away from burning social issues and dire necessities.
Owing to the apathy and lack of political will of the people's representatives here, the work was unnecessarily delayed for a long time. On the other hand, carrying out work on the Ghat section between Sakleshpur and Subrahmanya was the biggest challenge for the contractors. On the one side it is a dense forest. On the other, the workers who were engaged there showed reluctance to work on long schedules, owing to heavy rain and exposure to diseases and wild animals, say the officials.
The ultimate challenge that the railway department had was to get a green signal from the Railway Safety Commission which comes under the union civil aviation ministry. But there were hurdles. The tracks between Subrahmanya and Sakleshpur, particularly at a point called Shiribagilu, are being regarded as unsafe for passenger trains, especially during the rainy seasons. As if to prove the point and to make matters worse, a railway engine and few wagons of a goods train got derailed and fell into a gorge a few months ago.
But the technical staff here says that such incidents here took place not because of the track problem, but because of the human errors on the part of the train motor men. According to them, the track here is absolutely safe.
Already the track sustains the load of goods trains which are about 5 times heavier than passenger trains. Trains with 60 wagons and 5 engines are plying on this track every day. But the passenger train would have a maximum of only 18 wagons.
On the other hand, the Railway Safety Commission has given a green signal for resuming passenger trains on the route. Now the only question is, why our people representatives are not keen on demanding resumption of the passenger train.
The railway officers here directly blame the the private bus-owners' lobby as one of the main reasons for this delay. If the passenger trains to Bangalore begin operating, the bus-owners who run their buses to Bangalore would suffer a heavy, back-breaking loss.
It is an open secret that most of these 'luxury' buses are owned by politicians and big-time business interests. The train fare between Mangalore and Bangalore could be less than Rs 100 whereas passengers are shelling out Rs 300 on an average on bus journey. Isn't it natural that strings are being pulled to ensure the delay in resumption of train service?
Because of these lobbies, the common man's dream to travel by train has not come true for over 11 years. He has only to curse his fate and writhe his fists in despair.
The public only vents its anger by expressing its arm-chair opinions in the media, expecting someone else to do the job, and does nothing beyond that.
The 'intelligent' people of the district are resigned to their fate and live for the day.
Who is to blame? We get the leaders we deserve, don't we?
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