The Palakkad division of Southern Railway loaded a rake of limestone from Panambur in New Mangalore to Ballari on Tuesday. This is the first silo loading of limestone done by Palakkad division.
A press statement by Palakkad division of Southern Railway said that the loading of 3,953 tonnes of limestone in 58 wagons fetched the Railways a revenue of ₹32.11 lakh. The rake was loaded to JSW Steel Works in Ballari.
It said, this loading is the culmination of several rounds of discussion held between Railways and JSW to load limestone and dolomite from Panambur. Earlier, the Divisional Railway Manager of Palakkad, Trilok Kothari, had deputed the Business Development Unit of the division along with Additional Divisional Railway Manager-I, R Raghuraman, to visit Ballari and discuss with iron and steel manufacturers, to review the prospects of loading coal and limestone from Mangaluru to Ballari.
Panambur railway yard, which serves the New Mangalore Port, had dispatched 2.4 million tonnes of coal during 2020-21. There is also increase in the handling of commodities such as fertilisers, containers and edible oil in the recent past. With the addition of limestone as a loading commodity, the division is hopeful in achieving the loading of about 4 million tonnes during 2021-22, the statement said.