Salem division is one of the six divisions of
Southern Railway zone. Its headquarters is at
Salem, Tamil Nadu
Salem (), is a major city in Salem district, located on the banks of Thirumanimutharu river in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Salem is the List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, sixth largest urban agglomeration and metropolitan city in ...
.
History
Salem Railway Division is the newest division of the
Southern Railway Zone of
Indian Railways
Indian Railways (IR) is a statutory body under the ownership of Ministry of Railways, Government of India that operates India's national railway system. It manages the fourth largest national railway system in the world by size, with a tot ...
. It was carved out of the
Palakkad railway division
Palakkad railway division (formerly Olavakkod railway division) is one of the six administrative divisions of the Southern Railway zone of Indian Railways. It is headquartered at city of Palakkad, Kerala. It is the smallest railway division i ...
and
Tiruchirappalli railway division
Tiruchirappalli railway division () is one of the six railway divisions of Southern Railway zone (SR) of India. It has its administrative headquarters located at Tiruchirappalli. It serves most of the districts of delta region and Central Tami ...
. It was inaugurated on 14 November 2006 in the presence of Arjun Singh and former chief minister of
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...
,
M. Karunanidhi.
Important railway stations
Coimbatore junction
Coimbatore Junction railway station, also known as Kovai Junction railway station (station code: CBE), is the primary railway station serving Coimbatore city.
History
Train service in Coimbatore with construction of the Old_Coimbatore Railwa ...
is the busiest railway station in this division and accounts for 45% of the revenues. Coimbatore junction is classified under NSG-1 and it has 35,000 footfall per day.
Salem,
Erode
Erode () is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Erode is the seventh largest urban agglomeration in the state, after Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Tiruchirapalli, Tiruppur and Salem. It is also the administrative headquarters of the E ...
and
Karur
Karur () is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Karur is the administrative headquarters of Karur district. It is located on the banks of River Amaravathi, Kaveri and Noyyal.
Karur is well known for the export of Home Textile products to ...
are the other important junctions, while Erode handles most of the crew change in the route.
Tiruppur
Tiruppur or Tirupur ( ) is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Tiruppur is the administrative headquarters of Tiruppur district and the fifth largest city as well as an urban agglomeration in Tamil Nadu. Located on the banks of Noyyal Ri ...
is an important station in Salem division that handles a significant volume of agricultural commodities, textile products and machinery, which contribute an abundant profit in the freight segment.
Routes
Salem division has its jurisdiction entirely in the state of
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...
. It covers 15 districts in
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...
and has a total route length of ,
Coimbatore, Tiruppur, Erode, Salem, Karur and Namakkal being the important district Headquarters.
Salem division
Salem division is a revenue division in the Salem district of Tamil Nadu, India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, an ...
jurisdiction includes the following:
*
Tiruppattur to
Irugur
Irugur is a suburb of Coimbatore, Coimbatore city in the state of Tamil Nadu. It is one of the fastest developing suburbs in the Coimbatore Metropolitan Area. It is located to the north of Trichy Road, Coimbatore, Trichy Road which is a part of ...
*
Irugur
Irugur is a suburb of Coimbatore, Coimbatore city in the state of Tamil Nadu. It is one of the fastest developing suburbs in the Coimbatore Metropolitan Area. It is located to the north of Trichy Road, Coimbatore, Trichy Road which is a part of ...
to
Podanur
Podanur or Pothanoor or Pothanur is a neighbourhood in the city of Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu, India. Its history goes back to the creation of a major railway station and colony during British rule. The station was a major hub and is functional ...
* Irugur to Coimbatore North Junction
*
Mettupalayam to
Podanur Junction
Podanur Junction(station code: PTJ) is a railway station in Podanur, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India
History
It was the first railway station in the Coimbatore district, Kongu Region or Western Region, which opened in 1862 and third oldest ra ...
*
Magnesite Junction to
Mettur Dam
*
Mettupalayam to
Ooty
Ooty (), officially known as Udhagamandalam (also known as Ootacamund (); abbreviated as Udhagai), is a city and a municipality in the Nilgiris district of the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located north west of Coimbatore and so ...
(Meter Gauge)
*
Erode
Erode () is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Erode is the seventh largest urban agglomeration in the state, after Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Tiruchirapalli, Tiruppur and Salem. It is also the administrative headquarters of the E ...
to
Tiruchirappalli Fort
Tiruchirappalli Fort is a dilapidated fort in India which once protected the Old City of Trichy encompassing Big Bazaar Street, Singarathope, Bishop Heber School, Teppakulam and Tiruchirapalli Rock Fort. All that remains now is a railway statio ...
(Excluded)
*
Salem to
Dindigul
Dindigul, also spelt Thindukkal (), is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of the Dindigul district. Dindigul is located southwest from the state capital, Chennai, away from Tiruchirappalli, away ...
(Excluded)
*
Salem to
Virudhachalam
Virudhachalam or Vriddhachalam is a Town and taluk headquarters in Cuddalore district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The ancient name of this town is Thirumudhukundram. As per the 2011 census, the town had a population of 73,585 of which ...
(Excluded)
Loco Shed
There is a Diesel as well as an Electric Loco shed in Erode. Both the loco sheds provide locomotives to Southern Railways and South Western Railways.
One Meter Gauge loco shed is situated at
Coonoor
Coonoor, natively spelt as Kunnur (), is a Taluk and a municipality of the Nilgiris district in the Indian State of Tamil Nadu. As of 2011, the town had a population of 45,494.
Demographics
According to 2011 census, Coonoor had a population ...
to facilitate
Nilgiri Mountain Railway
The Nilgiri Mountain Railway (NMR) is a railway in Nilgiris district, Tamil Nadu, India, built by the British in 1908. The railway is operated by the Southern Railway and is the only rack railway in India.
The railway relies on its fleet of s ...
.
*
Diesel Locomotive Shed, Erode has been assessed as the best Diesel Loco shed in
Southern Railway Zone during the tenure of 2005–2006 and 2009–2010. The shed has been internationally certified with
ISO 9001:2000 for ''Quality Management System'' in March 2004 and
ISO 14001:2004 for ''Environmental Management System'' in September 2004 for its standards. A diesel loco belonging to shed was awarded "''Black Beauty Queen''", during the inaugural annual best loco competition among
Southern Railway zone outmatching other sheds viz.,
Tondiarpet,
Ernakulam and
Golden Rock, as about 15 parameters were considered for the selection. It has one of the largest fleet of
WDM-3D
The Indian locomotive class WDM-3D is a class of diesel-electric locomotive that was developed in 2003 by Banaras Locomotive Works (BLW), Varanasi for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), Diesel (D), Mixed traffic (M) engi ...
,
WDG-3A
The Indian locomotive class WDG-3A is a class of diesel-electric locomotive that was developed in 1994 by Banaras Locomotive Works (BLW),Varanasi for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad-gauge (W), Diesel (D), Goods traffic (G) engin ...
and
WDM-3A
The Indian locomotive class WDM-3A is a class of diesel–electric locomotive that was developed in 1993 by Banaras Locomotive Works (BLW), Varanasi for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), Diesel (D), Mixed traffic (M) ...
. Around 2014, Erode Diesel shed started to receive the High horse power EMD locomotives apart from the conventional Alco locomotives.
WDG-4
The Indian locomotive class WDG-4 (EMD GT46MAC) is a freight-hauling diesel-electric locomotive with AC electric transmission designed by General Motors Electro-Motive Diesel in 1997–1998 for Indian Railways, where they are classed as WDG-4. ...
was initial HHP loco allotted and
WDP4D
The EMD GT46PAC or WDP4 is a passenger-hauling diesel-electric locomotive with AC electric transmission designed by General Motors Electro-Motive Division and built by both GM-EMD and under license by Banaras Locomotive Works (BLW) of Varanasi, ...
variants were allocated later on. Around 2019, it started to home the WAG variant electric locos which are for freight operations and in 2020, it got
WAP-1
The Indian locomotive class WAP-1 is a class of 25 kV AC electric locomotives that was developed in 1980 by Chittaranjan Locomotive Works for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), AC Current (A), Passenger traffic (P) en ...
locomotive transferred from
Electric Loco Shed, Arakkonam
Electric Loco Shed, Arakkonam is a motive power depot performing locomotive maintenance and repair facility for electric locomotives of the Indian Railways, located at Arakkonam, Arrakkonam on the Guntakal–Chennai Egmore section of the Southe ...
. Apart from the Mainline service locomotives, plenty of shunting locomotives are maintained as well.
*
Electric Locomotive Shed, Erode is one of the premier sheds in Indian Railways, it was having the largest fleet of
WAP-4
The Indian locomotive class WAP-4 is a class of 25 kV AC electric locomotives that was developed in 1993 by Chittaranjan Locomotive Works for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), AC Current (A), Passenger traffic (P) ...
till 2017, eventually few were transferred to
Electric Loco Shed, Arakkonam
Electric Loco Shed, Arakkonam is a motive power depot performing locomotive maintenance and repair facility for electric locomotives of the Indian Railways, located at Arakkonam, Arrakkonam on the Guntakal–Chennai Egmore section of the Southe ...
. In October 2017, Erode received first two 3-phase AC locos of the class
WAP-7
The Indian locomotive class WAP-7 is a class of 25 Volt, kV Alternating current, AC Electric locomotive, electric locomotives that was developed in 1999 by Chittaranjan Locomotive Works (CLW) for Indian Railways. The model name stands for 5 ft 6 ...
from
Electric Loco Shed, Royapuram
Electric Loco Shed, Royapuram is a motive power depot performing locomotive maintenance and repair facility for electric locomotives of the Indian Railways, located at Royapuram on the Chennai Beach–Katpadi section of the Chennai Suburban Rai ...
. In July 2020, Erode was allocated with four
WAG-9
The Indian locomotive class WAG-9 is a class of 25 kV AC electric locomotives that was developed in 1995 by ABB Group (ABB) for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), AC Current (A), Goods traffic (G), 9th generation (9 ...
locomotives, making it the first shed in
Southern Railway zone to home WAG-9 locomotive.
* The Meter gauge loco shed at Coonoor is the place where the steam and diesel locomotives for
Nilgiri Mountain Railway
The Nilgiri Mountain Railway (NMR) is a railway in Nilgiris district, Tamil Nadu, India, built by the British in 1908. The railway is operated by the Southern Railway and is the only rack railway in India.
The railway relies on its fleet of s ...
are serviced, maintained and fueled for their trips. Coal-fired or Oil-fired steam engines are homed here along with
YDM-4
The class YDM-4 is Indian Railways' workhorse diesel locomotive. The first units were imported fully built from the American Locomotive Company (Alco) in 1961. Since 1968, it has been manufactured in India by the Banaras Locomotive Works (BLW), ...
class.
Pit lines
The pit lines for maintenance of passenger coaches are at Coimbatore, Erode, Mettupalayam and Coonoor.
* Coimbatore has two pit lines, both can handle 24 coach trains.
* Erode has two pit lines, one can handle 17 coaches and other can handle ten coaches. An additional pitline for handling long-distance trains is nearing completion.
* Mettupalayam has three pit lines: Two broad-gauge pit lines and one meter-gauge. The lone meter-gauge pit line is capable of handling four coaches. Among the two broad-gauge pit lines, one can handle seven coaches and other pit line has the capacity of six coaches.
* Coonoor has one meter-gauge pit line which can handle four coaches.
Trains Handled
Salem division handles many long-distance and interstate trains. Coimbatore coaching complex is the most important in Salem division and it is congested due to the huge volume of trains.
*
Cheran Superfast Express
The Cheran Superfast Express is an overnight Super Fast Express train in India which runs daily between Coimbatore Junction and Chennai Central via Salem Jn on the Southern Railway zone of the Indian Railways.
History
It was inaugurated ...
,
Chemmozhi Express
Chemmozhi express (Train Nos 16615/16616) is an express daily train run by Indian Railways between Coimbatore city Junction and Mannargudi. The train was named after Chemmozhi Manadu that took place in Coimbatore in 2010. This train passes t ...
, Intercity Express, Tirupati Express,
Uday Express
UDAY Express or Utkrisht Double Decker Air Conditioned Yatri Express are completely Double-Decker AC chair car trains designed by Indian Railways. The coaches of the train have an anti-graffiti vinyl wrapped exterior and have been given a bright ...
,
Thiruvananthapuram Mail
Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...
, Mayiladuthurai
Jan Shatabdi Express
The Jan Shatabdi Express is a more affordable and economical version of the Shatabdi Express''.'' The word 'Jan' refers to common people. Being an economical version of the Shatabdi Express, it provides the passenger with Air Conditioned Chair ...
, Nagercoil Express,
Tuticorin
Thoothukudi (formerly Tuticorin) is a port city, a municipal corporation and an industrial city in Thoothukudi district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The city lies in the Coromandel Coast of Bay of Bengal. Thoothukudi is the capital and ...
Link Express are maintained at Coimbatore coaching depot. Apart from this Coimbatore Jaipur Express and Hisar Coimbatore Express belonging to
North Western Railway
The North Western Railway (abbreviated NWR) is one of the 19 railway zones in India. It is headquartered at Jaipur,Rajasthan with 59,075+ employees, 658+ stations and a route length of more than 5761 km across at least some parts of four ...
gets their secondary maintenance.
* Erode Coaching depot maintains
Yercaud Express and Chennai Hyderabad Express. Besides these two express trains, few more passenger trains are handled at Erode.
* Toy trains plying in Nilgiri Mountain Railway are maintained at Coonoor and Mettupalayam.
Tourism
The famous
Nilgiri Mountain Railway
The Nilgiri Mountain Railway (NMR) is a railway in Nilgiris district, Tamil Nadu, India, built by the British in 1908. The railway is operated by the Southern Railway and is the only rack railway in India.
The railway relies on its fleet of s ...
heritage line is under Salem division. The scenic line starts from Mettupalayam and ends at Ooty. The section from Mettupalayam to Coonoor is hauled by a Steam locomotive. A
YDM-4
The class YDM-4 is Indian Railways' workhorse diesel locomotive. The first units were imported fully built from the American Locomotive Company (Alco) in 1961. Since 1968, it has been manufactured in India by the Banaras Locomotive Works (BLW), ...
Diesel engine is attached at Coonoor for the further journey till Ooty. Between
Mettupalayam and
Coonoor
Coonoor, natively spelt as Kunnur (), is a Taluk and a municipality of the Nilgiris district in the Indian State of Tamil Nadu. As of 2011, the town had a population of 45,494.
Demographics
According to 2011 census, Coonoor had a population ...
, the line uses the
Abt rack and pinion system to climb the steep
gradient
In vector calculus, the gradient of a scalar-valued differentiable function of several variables is the vector field (or vector-valued function) \nabla f whose value at a point p is the "direction and rate of fastest increase". If the gradi ...
. The NMR is the only
rack railway
A rack railway (also rack-and-pinion railway, cog railway, or cogwheel railway) is a steep grade railway with a toothed rack rail, usually between the running rails. The trains are fitted with one or more cog wheels or pinions that mesh with ...
in India. The average gradient in this rack section is 1 in 24.5 (4.08%), with a maximum of 1 in 12 (8.33%). Even though the NMR supplies networked computerized ticketing systems for onward journeys, it still issues
Edmondson style manual tickets for the Udhagamandalam-Mettupalayam journey to preserve its 'World Heritage Site' status. Ticket booking is similar to conventional trains and can be done via the Indian Railway website. It is advisable to book tickets well in advance, especially during peak season.
Medical Facilities
The medical Department comprises two sub Divisional hospitals – Erode and Podanur.
It also four Health Units at Coonoor, Mettupalayam, Salem and Karur.
At present proposals have gone to Railway Board for approval of a multi specialty sub divisional hospital at Erode.
Facts
* Southern Railway's first Anaconda freight train was operated by Salem division from
Erode Junction
Erode Junction railway station (Station Code: ED) is the main railway junction serving the city of Erode, Tamil Nadu. Erode Junction is one of the major railway Junction in Southern Railway and is located 3 km away from Erode Central Bus T ...
to
Jolarpettai Junction.
* India's first
Uday Express
UDAY Express or Utkrisht Double Decker Air Conditioned Yatri Express are completely Double-Decker AC chair car trains designed by Indian Railways. The coaches of the train have an anti-graffiti vinyl wrapped exterior and have been given a bright ...
was inaugurated at Coimbatore.
* Salem division has most of its entire Broad Gauge line electrified, once after the completion of Salem Vriddhachalam Electrification, it will be a hundred percent Broad gauge electrified division.
* Chemmozhi express in Coimbatore coach care is completely maintained by women.
* It has the only hill railway tourist toy train present in entire South India.
References
{{reflist
Southern Railway zone
Rail transport in Tamil Nadu
Divisions of Indian Railways