Tharoor criticises Thiruvananthapuram’s omission from Railway’s ’Vision 2030’, writes to Centre

Senior Congress leader and Thiruvanthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor on Saturday slammed the alleged omission of the Kerala capital from the 48 major cities’ infrastructure upgrade initiative announced by the Ministry of Railways as part of the ’Vision 2030’.

In a letter sent to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, he said while he welcomed the Ministry’s proactive approach to decongest India’s urban rail hubs, he was dismayed to note the “glaring omission” of Thiruvananthapuram from this list. The project was announced with a specific focus on doubling the train originating capacity. This exclusion is not merely a disappointment, but it appears to be a significant administrative oversight, given the city’s strategic and operational prominence within the Southern Railway network, the MP said.

In the letter, he detailed the significance of Thiruvanthapuram and said the city serves as the headquarters of the Thiruvananthapuram Railway Division, one of the six critical administrative pillars of the Southern Railway, managing an impressive operational span of 625 route kms.

“To exclude a divisional headquarters from a capacity-building exercise of this magnitude is baffling,” he said adding that the city serves as the gateway to the southern tip of the subcontinent, anchoring a vital tourism corridor and a burgeoning IT hub.

Noting that he was pleased to see neighbouring city Kochi on the list, he said the absence of the State capital – which manages the very division under which many of these trains operate – is an anomaly that requires immediate rectification.

The logic of “doubling originating capacity” is most applicable precisely where the administrative machinery and operational demand already exist, as they do in Thiruvananthapuram, Mr. Tharoor said.

“The development of our rail infrastructure cannot be selective; it must be commensurate with the administrative stature and operational reality of the region,” the MP said and urged the Railway Minister to take necessary steps for the inclusion of Thiruvananthapuram in the list.