Due to problems with land acquisition, the railway line’s tunnel section from Balaramapuram to Vizhinjam port is not moving forward as planned. The 9.02 km of the 10.7 kilometer railway route is underground. The environment ministry and the railways both approved the project. But since the proposal was approved by the state cabinet in March, not much has changed.

MPs recently met with Southern railway authorities to examine the matter. According to sources, MPs brought up the railway line connecting Vizhinjam port, but the railroads told them that not much had changed since the state government approved it and the property was set aside.

MPs made the decision to speak with the state government about it. The Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd. (KRCL)-prepared project is expected to be completed in 2028 and will cost Rs 1,482.92 crore. Before work can start, the KRCL must issue a GO and create a project execution chart. The construction of the Balaramapuram railway station will be finished first, followed by the drilling of the tunnel and the opening of the track at Vizhinjam. These tasks will be completed concurrently.

Following the discussion, MP Kodikunnil Suresh informed reporters that the poor pace of land acquisition is preventing the Vizhinjam railway line from moving forward. According to him, the state government had to move swiftly on projects like the Sabari railway line.

For the port to begin transporting transhipment freight by surface, a rail connection to Vizhinjam is essential. A loading and unloading yard will be built in front of the area designated in the port parallel to the container handling area, and the railway line will pass inside the port. Currently, feeder ships are used to transport containers from motherships to various ports throughout the nation.

As soon as the highway access point is prepared, the port, which now handles between one and ten lakh containers each month, intends to convey cargo by road. This will serve as a stopgap until the planned cloverleaf flyover is constructed at the intersection of the outer ring road, NH-66, and the port’s approach road.