Credit: DH Photo
Though Udupi is a famous pilgrimage centre and a famed hub for educational and medical facilities, its railway station lags far behind, failing to provide basic facilities to the passengers.
The station is in a shambles as there is an utter disregard for cleanliness and passengers are greeted with unhygienic conditions while boarding and getting down from the trains.
The 3,000+ passengers using the Udupi railway station on a daily basis face many hassles,” Railway Yatri Sangha (RYS) Treasurer K L Ramachandra Acharya told DH when contacted.
Though an escalator has been installed near the parking at a total cost Rs 70 lakh, passengers rarely use it. “The funds could have been utilised for other pending developmental works. It’s an investment gone waste,” Acharya said with disappointment writ large on his face.
Keeping passenger convenience in mind, the RYS raised funds from the public and provided 60 concrete benches to the Udupi railway station. “Among those 60 benches, merely 20-25 are seen now. I am not sure where the other 35 benches have gone,” the RYS treasurer added.
Passengers also complained about the lack of safety at the railway station. Udupi railway station is open on all sides. With the entrance being widened, anyone can walk right past the security guards posted at the entrance.
The two platforms lack proper shelters. The footbridge also does not have shelter, passengers rued.
“Due to the lack of safety, Udupi railway station is a nightmare,” said Sushma Shettygar, a private school teacher, who travels regularly by train from Udupi to meet her relatives in
Goa.
Stating that the restrooms are dirty due to poor maintenance, Sushma said women have a hard time due to unclean toilets.
“Konkan Railway’s indifference to the railway station is revealed by the fact that the stretch connecting the railway station does not have street lights at many places,” said activist Ganesh Putran. He also opined that the poor lighting and adequate CCTVs have added to the Railway station’s existing
woes.
“During summer, passengers waiting for trains during the day face plenty of discomforts as there are no shelters to shield them from the scorching sun,” said Vibhuthi Kamath, a regular traveller by train.
The Station’s landline phone is never operational. Kamath says the parking lot is inundated with muddy water during the rains. “There is no proper display of electronic boards of coaches, thus passengers are always in a state of confusion on where the coaches stop, he added.
Konkan Railway Corporation Limited’s (KRCL) Regional Railway Manager in Karwar B B Nikam said there were seven and eight additional passenger shelters on the first and second platforms respectively.
“The work on widening the approach road to the station had been completed,” he told DH when contacted.
He clarified that the infrastructure at the railway station is being upgraded in a phased manner. A waiting area for women was recently added. New retiring rooms are being managed by IRCTC and the work on a new goods shed and unloading platform is
underway.
“KRCL is keen on providing passengers with all the required amenities,” he
stressed.