South Central Railway will retain only the Secunderabad, Hyderabad and Nanded divisions, losing Guntur, Guntakal and Vijayawada to South Coast Railway.
| Photo Credit: Representational Photo
South Central Railway (SCR) will soon yield space, staff and revenue to the newly-carved South Coast Railway (SCoR), with the Railway Board appointing the first general manager for the proposed zone headquartered in Visakhapatnam.
The Railways has informed a Parliament Assurances Committee that a gazette notification will be issued after the revised Detailed Project Report (DPR), currently under review by the Railway Board, is submitted. While no fixed timeline has been given, the zone may become operational in about three months.
It could happen sooner, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi expected to visit Visakhapatnam next week for the International Yoga Day event, informed official sources. The PM had laid the foundation stone for SCoR in January this year. The port city will host both the zonal and divisional headquarters, with the zonal HQ to come up on 52.2 acres at Mudasarlova at an estimated cost of ₹106.89 crore.
With the formation of SCoR, it is now clear that SCR will lose its position as the fifth-largest among the 18 existing zones. The new zone will comprise four divisions — the renamed Visakhapatnam division (carved out of the existing Waltair division), along with Vijayawada, Guntur and Guntakal.
SCR will retain only the Secunderabad, Hyderabad and Nanded divisions, losing Guntur, Guntakal and Vijayawada to SCoR. This reorganisation means SCR will lose access to major ports like Kakinada and Visakhapatnam, along with a significant share of its freight traffic.
Senior officials estimate that SCR’s current annual revenue of over ₹23,000 crore could be reduced by half or more, with Singareni Collieries likely becoming the major contributor to freight hauling. Its geographical area will also shrink from 6,532 km to around 3,044 km, as SCoR takes over approximately 3,488 km.
SCR will be left with only one electric loco shed at Lalapet and the upcoming wagon manufacturing unit at Kazipet, while assets in Vijayawada, Gooty and others will come under SCoR. Of the 80,000 employees currently under SCR, more than half are expected to be transferred to SCoR, though they will be given options.
“There will be a rejig in organisational operations, but we will get more clarity only after the gazette notification is issued. These changes are aimed at administrative convenience and will have no effect on passenger services or freight operations as SCR was also formed in a similar manner, taking away divisions from then existing zones,” said SCR chief public relations officer A. Sridhar.
Published – June 17, 2025 12:25 on is
