T’puram: Minister for general education and labour V Sivankutty has slammed the Union govt for scaling down the satellite railway terminal project at Nemom and has demanded that it should be completed as per the original masterplan. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Sivankutty said, “The Union govt is deliberately undermining the crucial project, which is essential for Kerala’s railway development.” He also said that the railway made changes that effectively dismantled the original master plan. “Initially, a comprehensive project worth Rs 350 crore was expected, but the second phase estimate was drastically reduced to just Rs 97 crore. The original plan included the construction of 5 pit lines and 10 stabling lines, which was reduced to 2 pit lines and 3 stabling lines,” he said. By eliminating facilities for train maintenance, the Union govt rendered the Nemom terminal irrelevant, he said. Sivankutty also alleged that the railway ministry was evading questions in Parliament. “The response from the minister for railways to questions raised by MP John Brittas in the Rajya Sabha was highly irresponsible. The central govt remains silent on the changes made from the DPR submitted in 2021.”The project was announced in the 2011-12 budget and the foundation stone was laid by the central railway minister just before the 2019 elections, he said, and added that backtracking after laying the foundation stone is undemocratic. “The Nemom terminal is essential to reduce congestion at Thiruvananthapuram Central Station,” he added. He said that the injustice shown by the central govt towards the people of Nemom and Kerala cannot be accepted. Any move to eliminate the Nemom terminal in favour of Nagercoil will be strongly opposed, he added.Sivankutty also alleged that the decision to review infrastructure at Nagercoil Junction before taking a call on Nemom indicated a move to prioritize Tamil Nadu over Nemom.
