Kochi: Soon more Mainline Electric Multiple Unit rakes will be provided to Thiruvananthapuram division that would pave way for operation of MEMU trains on all days instead of the current six days a week in Ernakulam and Thiruvananthapuram regions.
“An eight-boggie MEMU rake and that of the ‘City service’ will be brought here for permanent deployment soon. We’ve got intimation from the Chennai headquarters in this regard and we hope to start the services this month itself. We’re considering the demand of passenger associations to make operation of all MEMU trains on all seven days a week,” said a senior officer of the Operations wing.
The MEMU rake used to run City services in the Ankamaly-Piravom route was not returned eversince it was sent for periodic overhauling four months back. The railways is now running an ordinary rake, combining coaches taken out of other passenger trains in the section.
Currently there are eight MEMU services using four rakes. However, they all run only six days a week. The circular MEMU, sanctioned in the 2013-14 railway budget, is being operated on all days except Wednesdays. Similarly, the Ernakulam-Kottayam-Kollam MEMU is not running on Saturdays and the Ernakulam-Alapuzha-Kollam on Mondays.
There is no Kollam-Nagercoil MEMU on Fridays and no Ernakulam-Palakkad MEMU services on Tuesdays currently. Meanwhile, eight new personnel were appointed at the Kollam MEMU maintenance shed, taking the total staff strength to 26.
“Now maintenance work of MEMU rakes could be done at Kollam itself instead of sending the same to Palakkad. Also the midnight MEMU service from Kollam to Ernakulam should be stopped and the rake utilised better. Currently the daily collection ends up around '1000 against the operational expense of Rs 80, 000,” said Paul K J Manvettom, All Kerala Railway Users Association President.
