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Konkan Railways
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FACTS & FIGURES
| Route Length | 760 Kms |
| Bridges | 1,798 (major - 168; minor - 1,630) |
| Best Time to Visit | September to April |
| Tunnels | 88 (longest 6.5 km) |
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INTRODUCTION TO KONKAN RAILWAYS
Konkan Railways offers one of the most luxurious train journeys in India. Konkan Railways offers a mesmerising route from Mumbai to Thiruvananthapuram. The gorgeous destinations of Goa, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala on the route of Konkan Railways make the trip unforgettable. Konkan Railways caters to the commuting solutions of the business and leisure travellers with the ports of west India as their destinations.
Konkan Railways offers breathtakingly beautiful sights to the commuters, unexplored destinations with natural charm and promises of improved economy. The travel time from Mumbai to Goa has been cut down drastically by the Konkan Railways. Throughout the journey the shimmering spots, picturesque scenery and Konkan beaches keep you going on happily.
THE MAKING OF KONKAN RAILWAYS
The construction of the 760-km-long
broad-gauge Konkan Railways heralds the realization of a long-cherished dream of millions of people of the Konkan region. For extending the railway system to the south from Bombay, the early pioneers of railway construction considered it more expedient to climb the Lonavala ghats from Bombay and reach Pune first than to go in for a direct link along the West Coast. There were two compulsions behind this choice. One was to connect the Bombay Port with its hinterland so that rich minerals and raw materials could be brought from the interior for shipment. The other was the daunting engineering challenge presented by the route along the west coast towards South, particularly in fording the innumerable creeks and rivers and in scaling the many formidable hill ranges reaching out to the sea from the Western Ghat.
The first ever railway line on the Indian subcontinent from Boribunder to Thane was opened to traffic on April 16, 1853 and the broad gauge line from the south reached Mangalore by 1907. A feeble attempt was made to extend the railway line from the Mumbai end in slow stages, first from Diva to Panvel (1964), then from Panvel to Apta (1966) and finally from Apta to Roha (1986). However, it was only in October 1984 that the Ministry of Railways decided to take a final location engineering-cum-traffic survey for part of the west coast from Mangalore to Madagaon, a distance of 325 km. In March 1985, the railways decided to enhance the scope of this survey to cover the remaining length of the west coast line from Madagaon to Roha. The Southern Railway, which was entrusted with this final location survey, submitted the project report for this route, dubbed the Konkan Railways after the coastline it hugs, to the Railway Ministry in 1988.
As the first phase of the west coast line, the portion from Mangalore to Udupi, a distance of 69 km, was included in the railway budget of 1989. 90. The remaining length of the project from Udupi to Roha, a distance of 768 km, was included in the 1990 - 91 railway budget. The Konkan Railways is a broad-gauge single line, from Roha to Mangalore (760 km). There are 53 stations on the line; the more important ones in Karnataka are Karwar, Ankola, Gokarna Road, Kumta, Honnavar, Bhatkal, Kundapur, and Udupi.
PLACES TO VISIT WITH KONKAN RAILWAYS
The ecology and scenic beauty of the region traversed by the Konkan Railways will make the journey along this route a pleasant and enjoyable experience for the passengers. The shortened time span and the easy accessibility to inland scenic spots or to beach fronts along the picturesque coastline should offer opportunities for travel not contemplated earlier and contribute to a booming tourist trade.
In an effort to make the region more accessible to tourists, important super fast trains like Delhi. Trivandrum Rajdhani Express has been diverted over the Konkan Railways. In addition, a Shatabdi Express has been also started between Mumbai. Madagaon.
In a region that has immense potential for tourism, the Konkan Railways can act as a catalyst for growth, attracting both the domestic and the foreign traveler.
Every state in Konkan offers tremendous variety. history, adventure, wildlife and sun-kissed beaches and many of these spots are untouched and pristine. Until now, they were inaccessible except to hardy explorers, willing to suffer the discomfort of exhausting bus journey.
Maharashtra is a state that can be immensely satisfying to those looking for history or adventure. For a traveler today, the Raigad Fort combines both. The fort, built by Chattrapati Shivaji Maharaj in 1674, witnessed his glittering coronation in 1674, and it was from there that he set out for his expedition of the south, and in 1680, breathed his last. In trying to reach it, the tourist can now opt for a steep three- or four-hour climb, or for the heart-stopping Raigad ropeway, 35 km away from Veer.
The Raigad district, formerly known as Kolaba, is the birthplace of Sri Kanhoji Angre, the first Maratha naval chief. The district has also one of the loveliest beaches in India. Well-known beaches of the area are Alibag, the headquarters of the district (108 km from Mumbai), and Akshi-Nagaon, 7 km away on the Alibag. Rewdanda Road, where inscription of Chalukyan period may be found.
If one thinks of beaches, the first name that comes to mind is Goa. When a traveler on the Konkan Railways alights at Madagaon, he finds himself 6 km away from Colva, the state's commercial hub. Colva, an 18-km stretch of silvery sand, has the secluded wilds of Palolem and Betul beaches at the far end. It was here that the second-century statue of Buddha was found. While beaches like Calangute, Vagator, and Dona Paola are the first areas that the tourists visit, Goa has far more to offer to the visitor. Panaji, the capital, only a small fishing village four centuries ago, is one of the most beautiful in the country, rising on the wooden terraces of the Alinto hill.
On the lower coast of the south India is Karnataka, formerly known as Mysore state. It got its name from Karu Nadu, meaning 'lofty land'. so called because most of Karnataka is situated on the western edge of the Deccan plateau.
The beautiful state with backwaters, coconut trees, and nature therapy, God's own country, Kerala is to the extreme south. According to legend, after lord Vishnu slayed the evil kings, and descended from the heavens in his incarnation of Parasurama, he threw his axe into the sea. It is said that where the axe landed, from shaft to blade the rich and beautiful land of Kerala arose.
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