Southern Railway 100% electrification: Southern Railway has achieved 100 per cent electrification of its Broad Gauge (BG) network, covering 5,068 route kilometres (RKM) across the zone. The milestone was achieved after the completion of electrification work on the final 71-km-long Pattukkottai-Karaikkudi section. The statutory inspection of the newly electrified section was completed on September 9.

How Southern Railway’s 100% electrification will benefit train operations

According to SN Narain, Chief Public Relations Officer, Southern Railway, the completion of electrification will help improve the efficiency and flexibility of train operations across the zone.

With the entire BG network electrified, trains can operate on electric traction across Southern Railway without the need for traction change at relevant points. This can help streamline operations and improve the utilisation of electric locomotives.

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The fully electrified network is also expected to provide greater operational flexibility, support more reliable train services and facilitate faster movement of trains.

The shift to electric traction will also reduce dependence on fossil fuels and support more energy-efficient and environmentally sustainable railway operations.

For passengers, the wider use of electric traction can contribute to more efficient train operations across the zone, while also supporting Southern Railway’s long-term modernisation and sustainability efforts.

Southern Railway’s electrification journey began in 1931

Southern Railway’s move towards electric traction dates back nearly a century. On May 11, 1931, Madras became the second metropolitan city in India after Bombay to introduce electric traction. The next major milestone came in 1968, when 25 kV AC electrification was commissioned on the Madras Beach-Tambaram section.

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The railway electrification in India began in 1925, when the country’s first electric train, operating on a 1,500-volt DC system, ran between Bombay Victoria Terminus and Kurla Harbour in Maharashtra.

Earlier in a statement, the Ministry of Railways said: “The completion of Electrification project(s) depends on various factors like forest clearances by officials of forest department, shifting of infringing utilities, statutory clearances from various authorities,geological and topographical conditions of area, law & order situation in the area of project(s) site, number of working months in a year for particular project site due to climatic conditions etc.”