Pratap Simha meets Railway Minister; seeks Kuvempu’s name for Mysuru-Thalaguppa Express

Mysore/Mysuru: Mysuru-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha has appealed to Railway Minister Ashwin Vaishnaw to rename the Mysuru-Thalaguppa (Shivamogga) Express after Rashtrakavi Kuvempu.

Presenting a memorandum to the Minister at his office in New Delhi yesterday, the MP reasoned that naming the train after the poet laureate Dr. K.V. Puttappa will bring further fame to him (Kuvempu). He brought out the deep connection between Kuvempu and Mysuru, especially the University of Mysore where he served as a Vice-Chancellor.

 The MP said that it makes more sense to rename the train after Kuvempu considering his association with Mysuru and Shivamogga, Kuvempu’s native place.

Sports quota for women

Placing the demand to appoint women’s hockey champions under the sports quota, Pratap Simha told the Minister that there are many women hockey players from Karnataka who have made a mark in national and international hockey. They must be given preference while appointing personnel to the South Western Railway, he urged.

He said that there are many women hockey players from Kodagu and Mysuru and they deserve to be absorbed by the Railways under the sports quota as they have excelled in their fields. Most of the players are from remote corners of Kodagu who have strived hard to make a mark in national and international hockey and they deserve to be recognised, the MP said.

Road overbridge or underbridge

The MP also urged the Minister to make a provision of a road overbridge or road underbridge or a limited height subway in lieu of the level crossing No. 66 between Hanakere and Mandya sections on the Mysuru-Bengaluru double-line electrified section. He said that he has got a representation from a cross-section of people seeking this facility. 

He said that due to the level crossing, the movement of people, predominantly carrying agricultural produce from one place to another is disrupted as the gates are closed over 100 times every day leading to traffic pile-ups and disrupting the lifeline of farmers. If the overbridge or the underbridge is constructed, it will allow seamless movement of vehicles without disruption when a train passes, the MP said.

Udyan Express to Mysuru

Considering the rapid growth of Mysuru as an information technology hub taking into account the establishment of various infrastructural projects including the 10-lane Highway from Bengaluru to Mysuru and an expanded airport, there is a need to link Mysuru, the cultural capital of Karnataka with India’s financial capital Mumbai. 

In this direction, the Mumbai-Bengaluru Udyan Daily Express can be made to start from Mysuru so that it will also help travellers to Mumbai from Mysuru, the MP told the Minister and urged him to extend the Udyan Daily Express to Mysuru. Extension of the train to Mysuru will also boost the industrial growth of the Mysuru region,  he reasoned.

Pratap Simha has also sought an increase in the frequency of KSR Bengaluru City Junction to Mangaluru Central via Mysuru from tri-weekly to daily service and the extension of services to Karwar/Kannur as existing before the opening of the alternative route between Bengaluru and Hassan via Kunigal.