Punalur railway station

Punalur പുനലൂർ
Light rail & Commuter rail station
View of the station
Location	Nedumkayam, Punalur, Kollam District, Kerala India
Coordinates	9°01′23″N 76°54′58″E / 9.023°N 76.916°ECoordinates: 9°01′23″N 76°54′58″E / 9.023°N 76.916°E
Elevation	6.74 metres (22.1 ft)
Owned by	Indian Railways
Operated by	Southern Railway zone
Line(s)	Kollam–Sengottai branch line
Platforms	3
Tracks	5
Construction
Structure type	Standard (on ground station)
Disabled access	Yes
Other information
Status	Functioning
Station code	PUU
Zone(s)	Southern Railway zone
Division(s)	Madurai
Fare zone	Indian Railways
History
Opened	1902
Services
Preceding station   Indian Railways   Following station Auvaneeswaram Southern Railway zone Kollam–Sengottai branch line Edamann
Route map Legend km to Trivandrum Central 0 Kollam Junction to Kayamkulam Junction TVC MDU limits 6 Kilikollur 8 Chandanattop Halt 13 Kundara 15 Kundara East 19 Ezhukone 25 Kottarakara 30 Kuri 37 Auvaneeswarem 45 Punalur Kallada River 55 Edamann 63 Ottakkal 66 Thenmala 13 arch bridge Achankoil River 70 Kazhuthurutti Halt 77 Edapalayam 79 Aryankavu Kerala Tamil Nadu 87 Bhagavathipuram 93 Sengottai 102 Tenkasi Junction to Virudhunagar Junction to Tirunelveli Junction

Punalur railway station is located at Nedumkayam, Punalur, Kollam district on the Kollam–Sengottai branch line.^[1] The Kollam–Shencottah railway line is the first railway line in erstwhile Travancore state and is more than a century old. The Kollam–Sengottai section is part of the Kollam–Chennai meter gauge rail route commissioned by the British during 1904. The line which was meter gauge has been converted to broad gauge partially. Currently the railway line is operational between Kollam Junction and Punalur.

History

The first idea of rail link from Tirunelveli to Kollam which was the trading capital of the Travancore Kingdom was conceived in 1873. The line was sanctioned by the Madras Presidency in 1899 and the survey was completed in 1900.The railway line was built joinly by South Indian railway, Travancore state and Madras Presidency.It was the ruler’s desire to create a rail link between Kollam, the then commercial capital of his State and Madras. The meter gauge line from Kollam to Punalur was inaugurated by on 1 June 1904. The Punalur–Sengottai railway line was inaugurated on 26 November 1904.The construction of the meter gauge rail route between Kollam–Punalur and Punalur–Shenkottai (Ghats Section) along the scenic mountain terrain was started in 1873 by the British engineers and was completed in 1902. Travancore rulers in association with the British prepared the plan for the track through the challenging mountain terrain as it involved construction of long arch bridges over steep valleys and tunnels across the rocky mountains of Western Ghats.

The first goods train travelled on this route in 1902 and a train carrying its first passengers began its run in 1904. It makes for a thrilling train journey as it passes over five big bridges and hundreds of tiny ones while negotiating mountain streams and valleys. Passengers are also treated to a breath–taking view of the Western Ghats. The train also passes through five tunnels on this stretch, including the one–kilometer long tunnel between Bhagawathipuram and Arayankavu. The station at Punalur was equipped with locomotive service centre, Parcel and Timber Depot, Train parking bays, Storage Tanks for water and oil, etc. The scenic Punalur–Shencotta railway lies across the western ghats, providing a valuable link across the southern states. The journey through the western ghats is incredible.

Layout

The station has three platforms, of which two are functional. It also has five tracks used for passenger and shunting purpose.

Gauge Conversion

The Punalur-Sengottai section is part of the 325 kilometres (202 mi) Kollam-Sengottai-Tenkasi-Tirunelveli-Thiruchendur gauge conversion project and part of the Tenkasi-Virudhunagar trunk route to Chennai at an estimate of ₹320 crore (US$48 million). The gauge conversion of the Thiruchendur-Sengottai section has been completed and is open to traffic. In Kollam Junction-Shenkottai section the broad gauge conversion is finished between Kollam and Punalur. The conversion work on Punalur-Shenkottai ghat section is on progress. Once the conversion is over this will serve as the shortest rail-route from Kochi port to Tuticorin port. Infrastructure of the station will be changed as proposed in tune with handling demands and matching to the glory of past.^[2]

Kollam - Punalur section

The Kollam Junction -Punalur meter gauge railway line to broad gauge conversion works foundation stone was laid in 1998 at Punalur. Services on the Punalur-Kollam metre gauge section were withdrawn on 1 May 2007, to facilitate the gauge conversion work. The gauge conversion took almost 11 years to complete after the foundation stone was laid. The 44 kilometres (27 mi) line was converted to broad gauge and inaugurated on 10 May 2010. Passenger train services connecting Punalur to Kollam, Madurai, Guruvayur and Kanyakumari are currently operational in this route.^[3]

Punalur - Sengottai section

To facilitate the gauge conversion work on the Punalur-Sengottai section, train services on the section were withdrawn in September 2010.^[4] The 49.2 kilometres (30.6 mi) Punalur-Sengottai section gauge conversion works is in progress currently and expected to get completed by 2017.^[5] Sections like Punalur-Edamon reach and Sengottai-Bhagavathipuram reach, which were announced for speedy completion in Railway Budget 2012–2013,^[6][7][8] have been completed recently.^[9][10][11]

Services

The station presently handles seven passenger trains, of which four services ply to Kollam Junction, one to Madurai Junction,^[12] one to Guruvayur and another one to Kanyakumari.^[13] And thereby, the railhead also connects Thiruvananthapuram, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Nagercoil and Tirunelveli.

Future

A new railway line is proposed from Sabarimala to Thiruvananthapuram via Punalur.^[14] If this proposed Sabari railway line is connected to proposed new railway terminal at Nemom near Thiruvananthapuram via Nedumangad, several long distance trains are supposed to be operated from Nemom terminal via Punalur to Chennai/Bangalore and rest of country.^[15][16] DEMU (Diesel Multiple Unit) service would be launched in Kollam-Punalur section soon. Electrification work between Kollam Punalur section sanctioned in the 2016 railway Budget^[17][18]

References

1. "Railway and Bus Service". Kollam district. Government of Kerala. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
2. Ignatius, Pereira (28 February 2008). "Punalur-Shencottah gauge conversion to begin in May". The Hindu. Kollam. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
3. "Kollam-Punalur line opening today". The Hindu. Thiruvananthapuram. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
4. "Metre gauge line to be closed". The Hindu. Madurai. 11 September 2010. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
5. "Punalur-Shencottah gauge conversion may miss deadline". The Hindu. 28 June 2013. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
6. "A better deal for Southern Railway in Railway Budget". The Hindu. Chennai. 27 February 2013. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
7. "New Gauge Conversion Projects Sanctioned in 2012-13". Ministry of Railways. New Delhi: Press Information Bureau. 14 March 2012. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
8. J Arockiaraj (15 March 2012). "Mixed response in south Tamil Nadu to rail budget". The Times of India. Madurai. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
9. Ignatius, Pereira (30 September 2013). "Gauge conversion project faces hurdles in Aryankavu". The Hindu. Kollam. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
10. Ignatius, Pereira (25 December 2013). "Shencottah train in the siding, yawning gap ahead". The Hindu. Kollam. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
11. Ignatius, Pereira (8 February 2014). "Punalur-Shengotta rail gauge conversion work set to resume". The Hindu. Kollam. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
12. "Madurai-Kollam train to be extended to Punalur". The Hindu. Kollam. 23 July 2013. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
13. "Union Minister flags off Punalur-Guruvayur train". The Hindu. Kollam. 15 September 2013. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
14. S. Anil, Radhakrishnan (1 March 2010). "Confusion over rail lines announced for survey". The Hindu. Thiruvananthapuram. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
15. Vinson, Kurian (14 March 2010). "Talks apace with Kerala on high speed rail corridor". Business Line. Thiruvananthapuram. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
16. S. Anil, Radhakrishnan (24 February 2013). "Key rail projects still on paper". The Hindu. Thiruvananthapuram. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
17. "New trains for Tamil Nadu". The Hindu. 13 February 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
18. "Raw deal for southern districts in rail budget". The Hindu. Madurai. 13 February 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2014.

External links