Dakshina Kannada district unit of Democratic Youth Fesderation of India (DYFI) has demanded enhanced train connectivity within Karnataka and infrastructure upgrade following Mangaluru’s integration with South Western Railway.
| Photo Credit: ANIL KUMAR SASTRY
Dakshina Kannada unit of Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) on Thursday (August 27, 2026) said the integration of Mangaluru Railway Region with South Western Railway (SWR) should be followed by aggressive infrastructure development and connecting of the region with different parts of Karnataka.A mere change of administrative set up from Southern Railway to SWR would not help the region unless it was complimented by comprehensive development of railway infrastructure and linking Mangaluru with the hinterlands, including North Karnataka, Kalyana Karnataka, Kittur Karnataka and Bengaluru, said DYFI District President B.K. Imtiyaz and Secretary Santosh Bajal in a statement here.DYFI said thousands of migrant workers from different parts of the State work in coastal Karnataka. For these people, who work in various sectors, including construction, industry, hotels and housing, travel by train would be an affordable and easy mode of transport. However, due to the lack of proper rail connectivity, they were forced to rely on high-cost bus travel.Connected more to Kerala and TNCompared to train services between Mangaluru and Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the number of trains connecting other districts of Karnataka, including the state capital Bengaluru, was far less. This has been causing inconvenience to thousands of passengers, including students, employees, labourers and traders, on a daily basis, DYFI said.While people’s representatives in Kerala were constantly pressing for additional train services to cater to the railway demands of their people, it was unfortunate that Karnataka representatives were lacking in showing similar concern and pressure. Representatives in Karnataka should strongly demand for more train services and enhanced infrastructure, it added.Direct and additional services should be started to important places, including Bengaluru, Hubballi-Dharwad, Belgavi, Vijayapura, Kalaburagi, Raichur, Ballari etc.Infrastructure developmentThe Railway Ministry, DYFI said, should develop Mangaluru Central and Mangaluru Junction Stations with modern facilities, improved platform lengths, enhanced passenger amenities etc.Mangaluru has been a major commercial, educational and healthcare hub. Strengthening the regional railway infrastructure and enhanced connectivity were the need of the hour, Mr. Imtiyaz and Mr. Bajal said. Published - August 27, 2026 01:58 pm IST
