TIRUCHY: The long-pending demand of a weekly service of Ernakulam-Velankanni Express via Madurai was fulfilled, and the Rail Users Association from Thanjavur accorded a warm reception to the crew when it reached the Thanjavur junction railway station on Thursday.
According to the rail users association, the Nagore-Kollam via Thanjavur, Madurai and Sengottai was operated as a daily service during the metre gauge period but when the section was converted into broad gauge, the service was canceled and this had affected the direct connection between the Delta region in Tamil Nadu and Kollam in Kerala and the rail users urged the Railways to resume the Nagore-Kollam service but it was put on hold for several years.
Later, a special train, Ernakulam-Velankanni via Madurai, was introduced as per the Train on Demand (TOD) scheme, and it received a good response from the passengers. The rail users appealed to the railways that the TOD service should be converted to a regular service.
While the MPs from Kollam and Mavelikara also put forth the demand to the railways to continue the service as a regular one. The Thanjavur rail users association also had approached the Union Minister for Railways through the Union Minister L Murugan and BJP State General Secretary Karuppu Muruganandham.
As per the appeals, the railway board sanctioned the service of the TOD into regular weekly service. Accordingly, the Ernakulam-Velankanni weekly service was scheduled to start from Ernakulam on Wednesday night and reach Velankanni on Thursday.
On Thursday at 2.45 pm, when the train reached Thanjavur junction railway station, the rail users association members accorded a grand reception to the crew and expressed that the service would also be helpful to the pilgrims to Sabarimala and appealed to convert it to a daily service.