Palakkad division of Southern Railways recorded 14.4 per cent growth in freight loading in 2011-12.
The division loaded 5.25 million tonnes (mt) in 2011-12 as against 4.59 mt in the previous fiscal; the target for the year was 4.83 mt.
According to a press release, the division saw freight earnings rise 26.32 per cent to Rs 210.43 crore (Rs 166.58 crore); the target for 2011-12 was Rs 143.23 crore.
Quoting Mr Piyush Agarwal, Divisional Railway Manager, the release said that passenger earnings were Rs 404.64 crore (Rs 352.31 crore); the target for 2011-12 was Rs 412.02 crore.
The division handled 7.91 crore passengers (7.21 crore).
The overall earnings of the Palakkad division rose 17.87 per cent to Rs 660.30 crore (Rs 560.20 crore). This was 10.58 per cent more than the Rs 597.14-crore target set for the year, it said.
In areas such as ticket checking and parcel earnings, the division earned Rs 58.67 crore (Rs 49.91 crore).
The release said that the trains are running at 110 km/hour in some sections after the improvement in infrastructure on those stretches. The sections are between Shoranur in Kerala and Mangalore in Karnataka; and between Thokur and Panambur in Karnataka.
All the trains announced in the Railway Budget 2011-12, which either originate or pass through the division, are in operation.