A van that had gone down a precipice in Haputale had fallen on to the railroad track and then been struck by a goods train and thrown off the track.
Double accidents
June 29th, 2009Elephant Pass Railway Station to turn “Affection Port”
June 29th, 2009The Ministry of Education has decided to gift the Elephant Pass railway station to the northern as an ‘Affection Port’ with the contribution from all Sri Lankan students and teachers under the ‘Uthuru Mithuru Yal Devi Train Concept’ mooted by President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
The decision was arrived at by the ministry to inculcate the vital ingredient of patriotism in the minds of the student population in the country and thereby lead them towards the transformation of the theme of one country, one people.
In keeping with this noble move, the student population will contribute a meagre Rs.two towards the reconstruction of the Elephant Pass railway station.
In accordance with this concept, the ministry will declare the fortnight between July 7-19 as the ‘ fortnight of students’ strenght’(Rataka Sisu Diriya) with several projects planned for implementation.
Source: News.lk
Sri Lanka to use Pakistan railway to fix war-ravaged track
June 28th, 2009Sri Lanka’s state-run railways is discussing a deal with Pakistan Railways to rehabilitate track damaged in an internal war and upgrade passenger coaches, a media report said.
Pakistan Railways will rehabilitate 250 kilometres of war damaged track, the Pakistan Observer website said.
The reported quoted Pakistan Railways chairman Samiul Haq Khilji as having told a board meeting of Pakistan Railways Advisory and Consultancy Services that agreement had been reached during visit to Sri Lanka from June 14 to 21.
Pakistan Railways will also rehabilitate 600 passenger coaches, for Sri Lanka Railways and 500 4-wheeler freight coaches will be converted to 8-wheelers.
Yal Devi was a way of life for the Jaffna citizen
June 28th, 2009Much has been said and written about the Yal Devi lately. As a regular traveller on this train in bygone days, I feel I should share my experiences with readers.
The Yal Devi was a very comfortable train. You got into the Utthara Devi after lunch and you reached Jaffna in time for dinner. The same way, you got into the Yal Devi early morning and reached Jaffna in time for lunch. The train was kept very neat and tidy, the toilets were clean, and there was a good catering service with courteous staff.
The Yal Devi thundered along the rail tracks for decades until it was stopped in its track by the separatist terrorists, who believed the train was working against their ideals, because the Yal Devi brought together the people of the North and the South.
permanent appointments to 500 railway employees
June 27th, 2009Sri Lanka government is to give permanent appointments to a group of temporary employees in the Railway Department.
The Railway Department said the letters of appointment for permanent employment will be handed over tomorrow to a group of 500 temporary employees who have been working in minor capacity at selected railway stations island wide.
The employees are to be deployed at their current railway stations for daily routings following their permanent appointments.
Sri Lanka Railway Department hopes to step by step make all its temporary basic employees permanent in the future.
source: Colombopage.com
Railway employees to resort to strike action
June 23rd, 2009Over 17,000 railway employees were planning to resort to trade union action to resolve problems affecting them. The employees allege that there were salary anomalies which have not been addressed over a long period of time. They also allege that disaster loans have not been paid and that some employees have not been confirmed in their posts.
The General Secretary of the All Ceylon Railway Employees General Union, Sumathipala Manawadu said that the union will have discussions beginning July 1 before they resort to strike action.
He said that if the government continues to ignore the problems of railway employees, they would be forced to take trade union action and that they will request other railway trade unions to join them in their agitation.
Rails and sleepers to be imported from India
June 23rd, 2009Sri Lanka government is planning to import rails and concrete sleepers from India for the reconstruction of the northern railway line from Kankasanthurai to Palai.
P. B. Wijesekera, General Manager of Railways confirmed that the discussions have already commenced on this issue at the highest level.
Rails and concrete sleepers are to be brought directly to the Kankasanthurai harbor and reconstruction work will begin from Kankasanthurai to Palai, he said.
According to the Railway Department 1,600 sleepers are needed for the construction of one kilometer of rail track. Concrete sleepers are more durable than timber sleepers and the extra weight adds more stability to the track.
Six engineers will travel to the North in order to examine the reconstruction work on the Northern track.
Source: Colombopage.com
Gate crash stalls Ruhunu Kumari
June 22nd, 2009
Katukurunda residents today blocked the Colombo-bound ‘Ruhunu Kumari’ express train to protest the removal of the gate at the railway crossing in Sebastian Mawatha, Katukurunda. Residents are seen carrying placards and standing on the railway tracks blocking the path of the express train.
Source: Dailymirror
