Mangalore - Bangalore train dream turns sour

Mangalore - Bangalore train dream turns sour

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MANGALORE June 20: The Bangalore-Mangalore train has arrived in the city on time only once since the time it was launched seven months ago. The train is scheduled to arrive at 8.05 a.m.

Sources at the Bangalore-end confirm that the same is the case at their end; the train is invariably late.

Sources in the Railway divisional headquarters at Palghat said that the train was late by an average of 117 minutes in April. The best timings were maintained in February, when the train was late by an average of 51 minutes.

On April 23, the train arrived 260 minutes late. The only time it arrived on time was on March 14. February 15 was another happy day when the train arrived just 15 minutes behind schedule.

The train has been 100 or more minutes late 50 times. It has breached the 200-minute mark thrice.

The train has gained such notoriety for being late that railway sources from Bangalore said that its ticket sales are dipping. This is sad news for a train that began to run after years of agitations by the people of this city. In fact, the train was over-booked until recently. There was a time when one had to book a ticket a month in advance.

The train was launched with much fanfare on December 8, 2007, when Railway Minister Lalu Prasad personally flagged off the train on its maiden journey.

On that day, thousands of people had turned up at every junction, station, level-crossing and clearing between Mangalore and Hassan. They had waited for hours just so that they could wave at their dream train as it chugged past on its maiden journey.

A fact that the people overlooked on that day was that the maiden train was also late by several hours.

People were happy and uncomplaining then, but nobody is amused today. The General Manager of the South Western Railway, Praveen Kumar, said that there was a problem on the line in April and May.

There were some serious repairs being carried out on four bridges during those months, he said. Mr. Kumar also said that the ghat section that lies between Subramanya Road and Hassan, caused the train to go slower than the designated speed. He said that the stretch has had a history of landslides and negotiating it is a challenge each time. There may be train stoppages in this stretch, he said.

However, several passengers who spoke to The Hindu said that the train tends to take almost an hour (sometimes more) to get from Mangalore Junction to Mangalore Central.