Ahead of the railway budget to be presented in the parliament later this month, the Sanvordem-Curchorem rail consumers association (SCRCA) has urged Union minister for railways, Suresh Prabhu, to restore the various train services along the south-western railway (SWR) route which were suspended in 1996 during the gauge conversion work, but not restored since then.
SCRCA has requested Prabhu to restore the express train service on the Vasco-Miraj and Vasco-Bijapur routes, considering the needs of the large number of people traveling on these routes for business, medical care and other purposes. It has also demanded restoration of the Vasco-Mumbai express trains via Londa, Belgaum and Pune.
Speaking...
more... to TOI, SCRCA president Devanand Bhandari said, "The number of passengers traveling to Belgaum, Ghatprabha and Miraj from South Goa has increased manifold during the last several years. The introduction of daily passenger trains along the route will lessen the hardships of these passengers."
SCRCA has also further drawn the attention of the railway minister to the long pending demand of the public for an express train service along the Vasco-Tirupati-Hyderabad-Secundarabad route.
It has also demanded that the Vasco-Yeshwantpur bi-weekly express be converted into a daily service, and that it may be renamed as 'Siddharudh Express', while also urging for the conversion of the weekly Vasco-Chennai express into a bi-weekly service and renamed as 'Dudhsagar Express.'
It further requested that the Vijaywada-Hubli Amravati express be extended to Vasco, and that the Vasco- Howrah Amravati Express which currently runs four days a week be converted into a daily service with pantry facility.
Copies of the letter have also been addressed to defense minister Manohar Parrikar, chief minister Laxmikant Parsekar, South Goa MP Narendra Sawaikar and North Goa MP Shripad Naik.
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