Kerala Assembly urges Centre to replace defective rails and old coaches

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Assembly unanimously adopted a substantive motion on Thursday urging the Centre to replace old and worn-out coaches and defective rails.

The motion, moved by Minister for Public Works G. Sudhakaran at the end of a discussion initiated by T. A. Ahammed Kabeer (Muslim League) , also called upon the Centre to ensure safety of women travelling by train and fill up vacancies of technical staff in the railways to ensure safety.

The motion also raised the State’s demand for a railway zone, more lines and modernisation. It also urged that all coaches deployed in the State should have biotoilets considering the fact that the State had been declared free of open defection. A satellite railway station should be developed at Nemon near Thiruvananthapuram.

Earlier, winding up the discussion, the Minister said that Kerala should unitedly demand safety. The government would press the Centre by all means to concede the demand.

Mr. Kabeer said that said that the preventive and protective measures taken by Railways were of poor quality.  Kerala was being discriminated against in the allocation of new coaches.

He demanded that the fitness of railway drivers and other should be ensured. They should not be overworked.  The Prime Minister and Railway Minister should be approached for a special package for Kerala. Development of new lines should be taken up as joint ventures.