Negligence of the railway administration: Minister S.C. Sivasanka alleged

Tamil Nadu: Transport Minister S.C. Sivasan has accused the railway administration of negligence for canceling the Chennai electric train service.

He issued a statement regarding this:

On February 19th, the Southern Railway suddenly announced that maintenance work would be carried out at the Chennai Egmore Railway Station starting February 20th. However, the Southern Railway administration did not issue any formal notification to the Mankaran Transport Corporation regarding this. Details were sent via email only after contacting the Southern Railway administration.

The notification stated that the schedule of electric train services, which had been scheduled to run every 5 minutes during peak hours, has been changed to one every 20 minutes, and this reduced schedule will be in effect from February 20th to April 5th. However, in reality, trains are currently running from Chennai Beach to Tambaram and Chengalpattu in both directions with a 30-minute interval.

Renovation work at Egmore Railway Station began without any consultation or caution in March, the month when school and college students are taking their final and midterm exams. This negligence by the Railways has caused numerous difficulties for students.

Considering this, the Manka Transport Corporation is operating 60 additional special buses on this route, in addition to the 314 bus services already operating. These buses are operating from Egmore Railway Station to Secretariat, Ezhilagam, Central, Government General Hospital, High Court, and Chennai Beach Railway Station, depending on passenger needs. The situation improved somewhat with the addition of additional buses on February 20th.

Only after the Manka Transport Corporation operated additional buses, the Railway Administration resumed operating short-distance passenger trains from Chengalpattu and Tambaram railway stations to St. Thomas Hill and Egmore from Tuesday (February 24th).

Additionally, numerous connecting buses operate from each Bukhara Electric Railway station’s bus stops and stations. This ensures passengers reach their destinations on time without any hassle.

Had the Railway Administration previously held a proper consultation meeting and provided the Metropolitan Transport Corporation with the necessary information, appropriate measures could have been taken to prevent passenger inconvenience. However, the Minister stated that the Chief Minister is constantly monitoring the situation and has advised passengers to make arrangements for a smoother journey.