Bodinayakkanur railway station

Bodinayakkanur railway station is a railway station on Madurai–Bodinayakkanur branch line, serving the town of Bodinayakkanur in Tamil Nadu state, India.[1] Currently it is closed, as the line is under gauge conversion, from metre to broad gauge.

Bodinayakkanur
Indian Railways station
LocationRailway Station Rd, Suburaj Nagar, Bodinayakkanur, Theni district, Tamil Nadu
India
Coordinates10.0109°N 77.3460°E / 10.0109; 77.3460
Elevation348 metres (1,142 ft)
Owned byIndian Railways
Operated bySouthern Railway
Line(s)Madurai–Bodinayakkanur branch line
Platforms1 (until 2010)
Tracks2
Construction
Structure typeStandard (on-ground station)
Disabled access
Other information
StatusClosed (line under gauge conversion)
Station codeBDNK
Zone(s) Southern Railway
Division(s) Madurai
Fare zoneSouthern Railway
History
Opened1909 (1909)
Closed1915–1928
1942–1954
2011 – Under construction till date
RebuiltExpected in September 2021
ElectrifiedNo
Services
Preceding station   Indian Railways   Following station
Boothipuram Halt
Madurai–Bodinayakkanur branch lineTerminus
Location
Bodinayakkanur railway station
Location within India
Bodinayakkanur railway station
Bodinayakkanur railway station (Tamil Nadu)

The station is part of the Madurai railway division of the Southern Railway zone and connects the city to various parts of the state as well as the rest of the country.

It is one of the rare railway stations in India where all the historic Indian gauges – 610mm, 762mm, 1000mm – are used. Currently it is being converted to 1676mm broad gauge.

Location and layout

The railway station is located off the Railway Station Road in Suburaj Nagar, Bodinayakkanur. The nearest bus depot is located in Bodinayakkanur, while the nearest airport is Madurai Airport, situated 87 kilometres (54 mi) away in Madurai.[1]

Lines

The station is the terminus of Madurai–Bodinayakkanur line. Currently it is under gauge conversion from metre gauge to broad gauge. The metre-gauge tracks have already been removed.

History

Teni Junction railway station was inaugurated on 1909 as a Light railway line (610mm), later that line was closed due to World War I in 1915. Later Bodinayakkanur railway station was inaugurated together with the Madurai–Bodinayakkanur 90 km branch line in 20 November 1928 (1928-11-20) as narrow-gauge railway (762mm) by the Madras Provincial revenue member Norman Marjoribanks.[2] Later in 1942, during the Second World War, the line was closed and the tracks were removed. After India's Independence, between 1953 and 1954, the track was restored.[3]

The Madurai–Bodinayakkanur line was sanctioned for gauge conversion, from metre-gauge (1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in)) to broad-gauge (1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in)). It was closed on 1 January 2011,[2] expecting to reopen it by 2012,[3] but due to lack of funds, the project advanced at very slow pace. Finally, on 23 January 2020, the first stretch between Madurai Junction and Usilampatti (37 km) was inaugurated, after passing the inspection of the Commission of Railway Safety.[4] The remaining 53 km Usilampatti–Bodinayakkanur section is expected to reopen in April 2020.[5][6]

During 1909 a narrow-gauge railway line existed between Kodaikanal Road railway station to Kumily Lower Camp via Nilakottai, Periyakulam, Theni, Cumbum. It had several branch lines in-between Periyakulam to Kodaikanal foothills and theni to Kottagudi. Near Kottagudi, the Kundala Valley Railway line's Topslip railway station is present at a distance of 5 km. This railway line had been closed due to World War I as well as due to poor patronage.[7]

The current railway line alignment between Theni railway station to Bodinayakkanur railway station follows the same alignment of the old railway line alignment which is existed during 1910 between Theni to Kottagudi branch railway line. The new railway line is constructed from Theni to Madurai Junction later in 1928 as Madurai – Bodinayakkanur branch line, now this line is exist and is currently under gauge conversion from metre gauge to broad gauge. The old railway line from Kodaikanal Road to Kumily is dismantled due to World War I as well as poor patronage.[8]

Services

As of January 2020, there are no train services.[9] According to the Madurai Member of the Parliament, S. Venkatesan, the train will run to Usilampatti by the end of February 2020, and by April, up to the terminus at Bodinayakkanur, when is expected to complete the gauge conversion works on the branch line.[5][6]

References
  1. "BDNK/Bodinayakkanur". India Rail Info. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  2. "மதுரை -போடி ரயில் போக்குவரத்து இன்றுடன் நிறுத்தம்" [Madurai–Bodi rail transport to stop today]. Dinamalar (in Tamil). Madurai. 31 December 2010. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  3. S. Vijay Kumar (14 March 2008). "Metre gauge to become history". The Hindu (in Tamil). Madurai. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  4. "Commissioner of Railway Safety, Southern Circle inspecting the newly laid Madurai-Usilampatti Broad Gauge section today - 23.01.2020 @RailMinIndia @GMSRailway". Madurai. 23 January 2020. Retrieved 24 January 2020 – via Twitter.
  5. "மதுரை – உசிலம்பட்டி ரயில் சேவை தொடங்குவது எப்போது?: சு.வெங்கடேசன் எம்.பி கேள்விக்கு கோட்ட மேலாளர் பதில்" [Madurai-Usilampatti rail service to start?: Divisional Manager answers to MP S. Venkatesan question]. The Hindu (Tamil) (in Tamil). Madurai. 21 January 2020. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
  6. "Speed trials held on converted railway line to Usilampatti". The Times of India. Madurai. 24 January 2020. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  7. "Mysteries of a Defunct Ropeway". IRFCA. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
  8. "1909 Imperial Gazette Railways of India".
  9. "Departures from BDNK/Bodinayakkanur". India Rail Info. Retrieved 26 January 2020.


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