How do we better know the proposed semi-high speed k-rail project of the kerala government?

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: As the land acquisition process for the new semi-high speed railway line from Kasaragod to Thiruvananthapuram is about to begin, the authorities have published a map to know where the track will pass. An outline map of the alignment of the route as per the current plan is available on the K-Rail website (https://keralarail.com/alignment-of-silver-line-corridor/). Slight variations are expected along this route, but accurate location information is available on the map. The alignment of the path is recorded on Google Maps and this works on a smartphone. The train is expected to reach Kasaragod from Thiruvananthapuram in four hours. Trains can travel at speeds of up to 200 kilometers per hour. There are 11 stations on this Silverline track. The stations will be located at Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Chengannur, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Kochi Airport, Thrissur, Tirur, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasaragod. Of these, a station is allocated adjacent to the Nedumbassery airport. The journey time on the busy Thiruvananthapuram-Ernakulam route is expected to be just an hour and a half. X Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. GO We respect your privacy. Your information is safe and will never be shared.

By Kerala Rail Development Corporation Limited or K-Rail is the hottest topic in the state today. Both the ruling party and the opposition are on a war path trying to make as much political mileage out of the situation as possible. Right now, the issue has been reduced to one of land acquisition and a question of rehabilitation of nearly 20,000 families. No doubt, it is a herculean task to rehabilitate these many families considering that constructing even 5,000 houses for the poor could not be completed for several years. Along with this, there are other major concerns in the proposed K-Rail such as the choice of technology, cost and schedule analysis, and finding the basic input materials. Above all, the long embankment and tunnels proposed pose serious ecological problems. Progress of a modern civilisation is dependent on mobility and communication. Starting from the invention of the wheel to the present day rocket systems for space travel, humankind has strived to achieve higher speeds. Last three decades have seen an explosive growth in modes of transport, thanks to the application of modern science and technology. Thus, it is quite reasonable that Keralites aspire for a faster mode of transport. Wagons running on rail tracks, for transporting coal in the mines, were invented around the late 18th century. From this, major developments took place in Europe and later in Japan, China, Korea, etc., with steam engine speeds upto 100 km/hr being achieved by the beginning of...

SETTING ASIDE a single-judge bench’s stay order, a division bench of the Kerala High Court on Monday allowed the state government to conduct a survey for the proposed semi-speed rail corridor. The Rs 63,491-crore ambitious project of the CPI(M)-led government has been facing massive protests over the survey and marking of the corridor boundary. Last week, the Railways told the court that it is “advisable” that proceedings of land acquisition for the proposed corridor be “stopped at this stage” – and that feasibility of its current alignment “has not been agreed” to by the Ministry of Railways. The project is a joint venture of the state government and the Railways. Also Read | The bench of Chief Justice S Manikumar and Justice Shaji P Chaly acted upon an appeal moved by the Kerala government challenging the interim stay on the survey. The division bench said, “The government is vested with adequate powers to conduct the survey, and mark the properties appropriately, for conducting the Social Impact Assessment (SIA) study after issuing appropriate notifications under the provisions of Kerala Survey and Boundaries Act, 1961.” The single-judge bench of Justice Devan Ramachandran had stayed the survey based on a bunch of petitions. Explained Relief for state govt “It is also submitted that concrete poles with marking ‘K-Rail’ are planted only with the objective of identifying the lands for evaluating social impact of acquisition and the state government has no intention to acq...

None less than chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan is leading the advocacy for the project. But as always with projects in Kerala, there are controversies galore, much fear and fury among those whose homes and properties will be lost, even as the ruling Communist Party of India (Marxist) is drumming up support for the rail. Speed is the biggest promise that comes with the SilverLine project that bridges the 530km from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasaragod. The highlight is the speed – a maximum operating speed of 200 kmph, cutting the travel time from south to north of the state from the present 10-12 hours to less than 4 hours. As with all projects in Kerala, a key question is the completion time. K-Rail managing director V. Ajith Kumar has said that the project was planned on a fast-track basis to be completed in 5 years. But there is a rider – the completion time hinges on completing the land acquisition in two years so that the rail can be built in three years. Almost any new project in Kerala attracts instant controversy. This project even more so, given that it runs the entire north-south course of the state. The project has attracted flak from India’s Metro Man, E. Sreedharan, to environmental activist Medha Patkar, and even adverse comments from the Kerala High Court. He says high concrete or masonry walls are needed to prevent trespass of people and animals in the corridor. Fencing will not help as it can be violated easily. Sreedharan warns that providing solid walls on ei...

Thiruvananthapuram – Kasaragod Semi High-Speed Rail (Silver Line) – Information, Route Map & Updates Menu: Thiruvananthapuram – Kasaragod high speed rail project, also known as Kerala Silver Line, corridor is a 530.6 km long approved semi high-speed rail line connecting Trivandrum and Kasargod in Kerala through 11 stations with an estimated cost of Rs. 63,941 crore. The project’s new alignment will connect 11 districts and aims to ease transportation along the entire north – south length of Kerala and reduce the total travel time to less than 4 hours, compared with the present 12 – 14 hrs it takes via the Indian Railways. The project will be executed by Kerala Rail Development Corporation Limited (KRDCL or K-Rail), a joint venture of the Government of Kerala and Ministry of Railways of the Government of India set up to augment railway infrastructure within Kerala. 5 new townships are planned to be built at Thiruvanathapuram, Kollam, Kottayam, Ernakulam and Thrissur as identified by KRDCL. • Kerala Silver Line’s Deadline: 2027 • My Completion Estimate: 2030 SYSTRA MVA Consulting prepared and submitted the project’s feasibility report to K-Rail in May 2019 and its Detailed Project Report with alignment in March 2020. On April 16 2020, K-Rail’s Board of Directors approved the line’s Detailed Project Report (DPR), with the addition of one new station at Kochi’s Cochin International Airport, and submitted it to the Kerala government for its approval. On June 10 2020, the Kerala...

The Silver Line is also known as Thiruvananthapuram–Kasargode Semi High-Speed Rail Corridor is the 1st proposed semi high-speed rail Silver Line project double-track green railway corridor of Kerala state. Project Summary • Project Name: Thiruvananthapuram–Kasargode Semi High-Speed Rail Corridor (Silver Line) • Project Owner: Kerala Rail Development Corporation Limited (K-Rail) • DPR Consultant: SYSTRA MVA • Project Cost: Rs 63,941 crore (Rs 639.4 billion) • Length: 531.45 km • No. of Tracks: Two (Standard Guage) • No. of Stations: 10 • Total Journey Hours: 3 Hours 52 Minutes • Ticket Price: Rs 1,463 one way (Rs 2.75 per km with 7.5% annual hike) • Ridership: Approx. 80,000 passenger per day • Project Deadline: 2025 Silver Line Semi High-Speed Rail Network • Network Length: 541.45 km • No. of Stations: 10 • Station Names: Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Chengannur, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Tirur, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasargode. Rolling Stock • No. of Coaches– 9/12 • Speed – 200 km/h • Traction – 25KV AC • Signalling –ERTMS level-2 Silver Line Project Funding Pattern • Government of Kerala – 20% • Ministry of Railways – 20% • External Agency – 60% Major Contract Awarded • Systra MVA: DPR Consultant • GeoKno India Private Limited: LiDAR and Geotechnical Investigation Work • Tender floated for providing consultancy services for Land and Transit-Oriented Development of Kerala Semi High-Speed Rail project on January 17, 2020. Timeline • May 2019: Paris based firm Systra MVA ...

By Kerala Rail Development Corporation Limited or K-Rail is the hottest topic in the state today. Both the ruling party and the opposition are on a war path trying to make as much political mileage out of the situation as possible. Right now, the issue has been reduced to one of land acquisition and a question of rehabilitation of nearly 20,000 families. No doubt, it is a herculean task to rehabilitate these many families considering that constructing even 5,000 houses for the poor could not be completed for several years. Along with this, there are other major concerns in the proposed K-Rail such as the choice of technology, cost and schedule analysis, and finding the basic input materials. Above all, the long embankment and tunnels proposed pose serious ecological problems. Progress of a modern civilisation is dependent on mobility and communication. Starting from the invention of the wheel to the present day rocket systems for space travel, humankind has strived to achieve higher speeds. Last three decades have seen an explosive growth in modes of transport, thanks to the application of modern science and technology. Thus, it is quite reasonable that Keralites aspire for a faster mode of transport. Wagons running on rail tracks, for transporting coal in the mines, were invented around the late 18th century. From this, major developments took place in Europe and later in Japan, China, Korea, etc., with steam engine speeds upto 100 km/hr being achieved by the beginning of...

None less than chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan is leading the advocacy for the project. But as always with projects in Kerala, there are controversies galore, much fear and fury among those whose homes and properties will be lost, even as the ruling Communist Party of India (Marxist) is drumming up support for the rail. Speed is the biggest promise that comes with the SilverLine project that bridges the 530km from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasaragod. The highlight is the speed – a maximum operating speed of 200 kmph, cutting the travel time from south to north of the state from the present 10-12 hours to less than 4 hours. As with all projects in Kerala, a key question is the completion time. K-Rail managing director V. Ajith Kumar has said that the project was planned on a fast-track basis to be completed in 5 years. But there is a rider – the completion time hinges on completing the land acquisition in two years so that the rail can be built in three years. Almost any new project in Kerala attracts instant controversy. This project even more so, given that it runs the entire north-south course of the state. The project has attracted flak from India’s Metro Man, E. Sreedharan, to environmental activist Medha Patkar, and even adverse comments from the Kerala High Court. He says high concrete or masonry walls are needed to prevent trespass of people and animals in the corridor. Fencing will not help as it can be violated easily. Sreedharan warns that providing solid walls on ei...

The Silver Line is also known as Thiruvananthapuram–Kasargode Semi High-Speed Rail Corridor is the 1st proposed semi high-speed rail Silver Line project double-track green railway corridor of Kerala state. Project Summary • Project Name: Thiruvananthapuram–Kasargode Semi High-Speed Rail Corridor (Silver Line) • Project Owner: Kerala Rail Development Corporation Limited (K-Rail) • DPR Consultant: SYSTRA MVA • Project Cost: Rs 63,941 crore (Rs 639.4 billion) • Length: 531.45 km • No. of Tracks: Two (Standard Guage) • No. of Stations: 10 • Total Journey Hours: 3 Hours 52 Minutes • Ticket Price: Rs 1,463 one way (Rs 2.75 per km with 7.5% annual hike) • Ridership: Approx. 80,000 passenger per day • Project Deadline: 2025 Silver Line Semi High-Speed Rail Network • Network Length: 541.45 km • No. of Stations: 10 • Station Names: Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Chengannur, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Tirur, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasargode. Rolling Stock • No. of Coaches– 9/12 • Speed – 200 km/h • Traction – 25KV AC • Signalling –ERTMS level-2 Silver Line Project Funding Pattern • Government of Kerala – 20% • Ministry of Railways – 20% • External Agency – 60% Major Contract Awarded • Systra MVA: DPR Consultant • GeoKno India Private Limited: LiDAR and Geotechnical Investigation Work • Tender floated for providing consultancy services for Land and Transit-Oriented Development of Kerala Semi High-Speed Rail project on January 17, 2020. Timeline • May 2019: Paris based firm Systra MVA ...

SETTING ASIDE a single-judge bench’s stay order, a division bench of the Kerala High Court on Monday allowed the state government to conduct a survey for the proposed semi-speed rail corridor. The Rs 63,491-crore ambitious project of the CPI(M)-led government has been facing massive protests over the survey and marking of the corridor boundary. Last week, the Railways told the court that it is “advisable” that proceedings of land acquisition for the proposed corridor be “stopped at this stage” – and that feasibility of its current alignment “has not been agreed” to by the Ministry of Railways. The project is a joint venture of the state government and the Railways. Also Read | The bench of Chief Justice S Manikumar and Justice Shaji P Chaly acted upon an appeal moved by the Kerala government challenging the interim stay on the survey. The division bench said, “The government is vested with adequate powers to conduct the survey, and mark the properties appropriately, for conducting the Social Impact Assessment (SIA) study after issuing appropriate notifications under the provisions of Kerala Survey and Boundaries Act, 1961.” The single-judge bench of Justice Devan Ramachandran had stayed the survey based on a bunch of petitions. Explained Relief for state govt “It is also submitted that concrete poles with marking ‘K-Rail’ are planted only with the objective of identifying the lands for evaluating social impact of acquisition and the state government has no intention to acq...