Damaged tracks restored, train traffic on Vijayawada-Hyderabad route set to resume (Lead)

Hyderabad: Two tracks damaged in the recent floods in Telangana’s Mahabubabad district were restored on Wednesday, paving the way for the resumption of trains between Vijayawada and Hyderabad after four days.

The South-Central Railway (SCR) has restored the double-line track in the Tadla Pusapalli-Mahabubabad section and the single-line track in the Intekanne-Kesamudram section.

Another line in the Intekanne-Kesamudram section is in an advanced stage of restoration and is likely to be completed Wednesday night, said SCR.

An empty rake of SMVT Bengaluru -Danapur Sanghamitra Express was operated on the restored portion of track from Kesamudram to Mahbubabad and the line was declared fit for train traffic.

The damage at all eight locations in the Up and Down lines of the Tadla Pusapalli-Mahbubabad section was successfully repaired by Tuesday evening.

The Guntur-Secunderabad Golconda Express was the first passenger train to cross the restored tracks at 2.30 p.m. on Wednesday. The tracks between Intekanne-Kesamudram and Tadla Pusapalli-Mahbubabad sections were damaged at 15 locations – 8 locations in the Tadla Pusapalli-Mahbubabad sections and at seven locations between Intekanne-Kesamudram sections.

The restoration work was taken up on war footing. A total of 30,000 cubic metres of soil, 5,000 cubic metres of ballast, and 6,000 cubic metres of consolidation special soil were used for restoration. Two monsoon special trains (with boulders and sandbags), 27 Hitachi excavators, 10 JCBs, 18 tractors, 30 tippers, two utility track vehicles, two multi-purpose tamping machines, two duomatic tamping machines, one dynamic stabilisation machine, one ballast rake and around 750 skilled labourers were involved to carry out the works.

SCR General Manager Arun Kumar Jain appreciated the team of officials and staff involved in the restoration work. He commended the services of all the safety staff including track-men on night patrolling duties for their alertness and prompt action in the prevention of any untoward incidents during the middle of the night. Earlier, the General Manager personally visited the Intekanne-Kesamudram section on September 2 and advised the team of officials to restore the track at the earliest while ensuring all the necessary safety precautions. He also personally monitored the track restoration activity continuously from the disaster management control room at Rail Nilayam, Secunderabad.

The damage had disrupted the rail traffic on the main trunk, resulting in the cancellation of more than 500 trains during the last four days. Several other trains were either partially cancelled or diverted.