Soon, you could enjoy Konkan via glass-roof trains

In the coming years, there's a possibility that you might board a see-through coach, with a transparent rooftop, while travelling via Konkan Railway (KR).

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A Konkan Railway official claimed that each of the tourist trains would have about five to six glass-roof coaches. File pic

On Tuesday, railway officials made a slew of announcements for the upgradation of the 750-km-long railway route - from Roha to Mangalore. The announcements have been aimed at boosting tourism and are part of Konkan Railway Corporation's (KRC) silver jubilee celebrations.

Bhanu Prakash Tayal, chairperson and managing director, KRC, said, "Passengers will have a unique experience and these trains will boost tourism in Konkan. The state governments of Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka - through which the rail route passes - have shown keen interest in the project and are ready to provide monetary aid. Design for these coaches is being finalised, and the coaches will be built in West Bengal."

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Another KRC official claimed that each of the tourist trains would have about five to six coaches. He added that each of the coaches would cost about Rs 5 crore. Tayal also announced several big-ticket projects, including electrification and doubling of the railway line that would take three and five years, respectively.

He also stated that a Diesel Multiple Unit (DMU) service between Vasai to Chiplun was on the verge of finalisation. Tayal added that another Rs 100 crore would be spent on upgradation of stations in the next three to four years. In the next one year, KRC plans to add another five to six railway stations. Moreover, the Rs 750-crore Jaigarh Port Connectivity is also on the cards and the service is expected to start in the next two years.

Installation of escalators and CCTV cameras across various stations is also part of the proposal. The monitoring of CCTV cameras, equipped with face recognition software, will be done from Ratnagiri and Madgaon. In addition, WiFi connectivity across six major stations will be introduced in the next few months.

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Confirming that investors have approached the KRC for funding the electrification and line doubling, Tayal said, "Investors are showing interest in our projects. After Chiplun to Karad, a detail report of Vaibhavwadi to Kolhapur route is ready and the project is likely to cost about Rs 2,500 crore to Rs 3,000 crore."

The foundation stone laying ceremony for doubling the tracks will be held on November 8 at Kolad. The Rs 10,000-crore project is estimated to be completed in five years. The work will be carried out in phases and start with doubling of Roha-Veer line.