South Coast Railway completes 100 days; ₹54,479 crore of projects under way

The South Coast Railway (SCoR) zone has completed 100 days since it began operations, marked by administrative consolidation, infrastructure upgrades and the expansion of passenger services. Headquartered in Visakhapatnam, the zone spans four divisions (Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Guntakal and Guntur), covering nearly 3,532 route kilometres and 6,455 track kilometres. With an anticipated originating revenue of ₹15,500 crore and freight loading crossing 100 million tonnes annually, the zone has emerged as a growth engine for the region, officials said.

Project sanctions and investments

Within its first two months, SCoR secured key project sanctions. These include the ₹300-crore Visakhapatnam Yard Remodelling Project, featuring six additional lines, platforms 8 to 14, electronic interlocking and platform widening, the ₹1,205-crore Guntakal-Ballari Quadrupling Project and ₹20 crore allocated for crowd management facilities at Tirupati.

“Looking ahead, the zone is actively executing 5 new railway line projects and 24 multi-tracking works worth approximately ₹54,479 crore, with another ₹70,865 crore worth of projects already in the pipeline,” an SCoR official told The Hindu.

Safety, signalling and civil works

Over 300 road-over-bridges (ROBs) and road-under-bridges (RUBs) are under construction as part of the zone’s focus on safety and connectivity. Foundation stones have been laid for three ROBs in Guntur, two in Vijayawada and two in Ichchapuram, and three major road-over-road bridges are coming up at Pendurthi, Guntakal and Guntur.

The zone has also commissioned yard remodelling works at Narsapur-Vijayawada and Garudaballi-Visakhapatnam, expanded automatic block signalling in the Nellore-Telamanchi section, and installed the indigenous Kavach safety system on nearly 100 locomotives, with the first 100-km Kavach section slated for commissioning by year-end.

Stations and special trains

Three redeveloped Amrit Bharat Stations have been inaugurated at Rayanapadu, Mangalagiri and Cumbum, and modernisation works are in progress at 70 more stations. To decongest busy hubs such as Visakhapatnam and Tirupati, augmentation works, including third and fourth lines and yard remodelling, are planned at Simhachalam North and Renigunta.

SCoR has also regularised former Train-on-Demand (TOD) specials, such as the Tiruvannamalai-Narsapur and SMVT Bengaluru-Narsapur express trains. To clear the seasonal rush and crowds for competitive exams (RRB, NEET) and large gatherings such as the forthcoming Godavari Pushkarams in Rajamahendravaram, the zone regularly operates 10 pairs of festival specials alongside dedicated Jansadharan special trains across multiple routes.