TRICHY: Lok Sabha member K N Arun Nehru has urged the Centre to expedite work on building a railway link to Perambalur.
The DMK MP stated in the Lok Sabha on Monday that Perambalur is the only district in Tamil Nadu that lacks railway connectivity. He said the absence of rail connectivity is hampering the industrial and agricultural development of his constituency.
The nearest railway station for Perambalur is located in neighbouring Ariyalur district headquarters — situated around 30 km away from Perambalur town.
“A new railway line to Perambalur would benefit in two ways — the district has the largest non-leather footwear industry to employ around 50,000 people and the largest amount of maize production (around 5 lakh metric tonne) happens in the district. Rail connectivity will help in the transport of workers and agricultural produce,” the Perambalur MP said.
Pointing out that all other parts of Tamil Nadu have railway line within 40km radius, Arun Nehru said that the railway ministry should expedite the proposal for a new railway line connecting Perambalur with Ariyalur and Namakkal districts via Thuraiyur and Thathaiyangarpet towns in Trichy district.
A reconnaissance engineering cum traffic field survey report for a 108km-long railway link between Namakkal and Ariyalur via Perambalur was completed and submitted to the railway board by Southern Railway before 2021. However, funds are yet to be sanctioned, according to him.
