Frontier of East Coast Railway needs to be redrawn

With the Waltair Division of East Coast Railway going to the new South Coast Railway, there is now widespread talk about injustice to Odisha. The matter is important enough to warrant a detailed and dispassionate analysis. Minister’s assurance that railway lines within Odisha under the Waltair Division would remain under the East Coast Railway, however, does not address the issue fully. While it is good that the South Coast Railway would have jurisdiction over the all-important 445 km long Kottavalsa -Kiraandul line only up to Araku and thereafter the new Rayagada Division of the East Coast Railway would have control over the line up to the Odisha border and East Coast Railway would also have full control over the Nuapara-Gunupur line including Nuapara junction, the real impact of the loss of Waltair on the East Coast Railway has not been adequately addressed. 

Waltair provided robust infrastructure support for the operational efficiency of the East Coast zonal Railway. Its massive loco-sheds—both Diesel and Electric—and other facilities made the East Coast perform extraordinarily well. It is another matter that the Waltair Division earned millions as revenue as well which would not now be available to East Coast Railway. The crux of the issue, however, is the deleterious effect Waltair’s loss would have on the operational viability of the East Coast Railway. The issue therefore is not simple enough that can be addressed fully by having a new Division at Rayagada. This largesse means little, though it is absolutely essential that the Rayagada Division builds its infrastructure quickly and adequately. 

We need to look at the existing boundaries of the East Coast Railway and remedy the historical wrongs that still continue.

The principle adopted for Waltair Division that it would have jurisdiction on the KK line up to Araku, should as well be followed for East Coast Railway with reference to South Eastern and South East Central Railways. As of now, important commercial centres like Belpahar, and Brajarajnagar are with the South East Central Railway, and all-important stations like Jharsuguda, Rourkela, Bondomunda, Barbil, Balasore, Baripada continue with South Eastern Railway. It is absolutely necessary that all railway lines in Balasore, Bhadrak, Mayurbhanj, Sundargarh, Deogarh, Jharsuguda, and Keonjhar are brought under the East Coast Railway. Such a reorganisation would address the issue of loss of infrastructure facility at Waltair by having an almost similar facility at Bondomunda and, would, to some extent, even address the issue of revenue loss. 

The other important issue relates to the administrative restructuring of the revamped East Coast Railway. There should be two more Divisions – at Baripada and Rourkela-- to manage both the existing lines and the routes in the pipeline. The reorganised East Coast Railway should also have a Loco shed at Rayagada to compensate for the loss of Waltair.