Track electrification to be completed by December

Electrification of Tiruchi-Thanjavur broad gauge section, executed by Central Organisation for Railway Electrification (CORE), is expected to be completed by December.

The overhead electrification work of the nearly 50-km double line stretch got a shove from April after the track doubling project on Tiruchi-Thanjavur broad gauge section was completed.

Distance

A senior CORE official said overhead wiring works were under way from Golden Rock to Solagampatti and pre-wiring from Solagampatti to Budalur. Foundation laying from Alakkudi to Thanjavur junction was on the verge of completion and it would be followed by installation of masts on both sides of the tracks since Tiruchi-Thanjavur was a double line section. The total distance to be covered in both directions, including loop line, would be around 120 km, the official said.

Funds were not a constraint for the ongoing project as the railway administration had given a huge thrust to electrification projects and its speedier completion, the official further said.

At the current pace of work, the electrification project was expected to be completed by December.

Although the electrification project started in March last, it moved at a slow place awaiting completion of track doubling works from Golden Rock to Thanjavur. The works got expedited once the second railway line was laid.

Post-completion, the electrified stretch would be inspected by the Commissioner of Railway Safety and only upon obtaining the mandatory clearance would the section be allowed for operation of electric loco-hauled passenger trains.

At present, passenger trains were being hauled by diesel locomotives from Thanjavur to Tiruchi.

The Tiruchi-Thanjavur project was part of the Tiruchi-Karaikal electrification project, which is being executed by CORE at a cost of Rs. 250 crore.

The official said electrification works were simultaneously under way in the portions from Thanjavur to Tiruvarur and from Tiruvarur to Karaikal.

Power sub-station

A power sub-station would be established as part of the project at Tiruvarur. Overhead electrification works in the stretch from Thanjavur to Karaikal (103 km) was expected to be completed by June, the official added.

Source