Madurai–Tuticorin new rly line may be put on freeze

CHENNAI: Southern Railway has recommended that the 144km Madurai – Tuticorin new line project via Aruppukottai “be put on freeze”, allegedly for want of commercial viability.

A letter dated July 24 to the member (infrastructure) of the Railway Board (copy available with DT Next) by RN Singh, GM, Southern Railway, said the new line is “being proposed for freezing”. The Centre has created a budget outlay of Rs 114 crore in the 2023-24 fiscal for the project for which Rs 2.34 crore was spent till July 15.

Significantly, SR has completed 32.35km of the 143.5 km new line project, including the 18km stretch from Milavittan to Melmarudur, commissioned on March 8, 2022.

Abhishek Jagawat, joint director of Gati Shakthi had written to the zone on July 12 inviting the officials for a discussion on the revised estimate of the project on July 21. However, officials of Gati Shakthi advised the zone to send a fresh proposal after vetting and financial approval of the general manager on July 14.

Highly placed SR sources disclosed to DT Next that about 90 hectares of land have so far been acquired for the project and a special Divisional Revenue Officer and three tahsildars of the State government have been engaged for acquiring land for the project, conceived at an abstract cost of Rs 601.43 crore in 2011-12 before the preparation of a Rs 2,053 crore detailed estimated later. Commercial viability could not be cited as the reason for the ‘freezing’ of the project as the EIRR (Economic Internal Rate of Return) was 21.24% for the new line, against the 10% EIRR required for the ‘go ahead’ for any project.

Notably, the SR general manager, in a Dec 23, 2022 dated letter to the member (infra) of the railway board, also recommended exclusion of the project from the MISSION 3000MT for “not having freight prospects”.