Villupuram–Pondicherry branch line

Rail line in India

Villupuram–Pondicherry branch line

Overview
Status| Operational
Owner| Indian Railways
Locale| Tamil Nadu
Termini|

* Viluppuram Junction (VM)
* Puducherry (PDY)

Service
Operator(s)| Southern Railway zone
History
Opened| 16 December 1879; 144 years ago (16 December 1879)[1][2][3]
Technical
Track length| Branch lines:
VMTooltip Viluppuram Junction railway station–PDYTooltip Puducherry railway station (38 kilometres (24 mi))
Electrification| 25 kV AC 50 Hz
Single-line electrification
Operating speed| 100 km/h (62 mph)
Highest elevation| Viluppuram Junction 45 metres (148 ft)
Puducherry 6 metres (20 ft)

Route map

Legend

|  |  |

|
|
|
|

|  |

|  |  to Katpadi Junction
|  |

|  |  Chennai Egmore
|  |

| Viluppuram Junction
|  |

|  |  Vriddhachalam Junction
|  |

|  |  to Cuddalore Port Junction
|  |

| Valavanur
|  |

| Chinna Babu Samudram
|  |

|  |  | Tamil Nadu

Puducherry
|  |

|  |  NH 332
|  |

| Villianur
|  |

|  |  NH 332
|  |

| Puducherry
|  |

|  |
|  |  |  |  |  |

The Villupuram Junction–Puducherry (Pondy) branch line is a single electrified railway line run from Viluppuram Junction, where it splits off the Chennai Egmore–Thanjavur main line, and Puducherry.

## History

[edit]

The line was originally built in the late ninteeth century and crossed between British and French territory at the Sankaraparani River.[4] It opened on 16 December 1879.[4] The line once had spur to major textile mill in Pondicherry[5] as well as to its port. Before broad gauge conversion, trains between Puducherry and Villupuram halted at Palliyaneliyanur.[6]

As of 2019, there were plans to develop the intermediate station infrastructure to increase capacity on the line.[7]

## Services

[edit]

The branch line serves superfast express trains bound for Howrah, Bhubaneswar, and New Delhi. There are also standard express trains serving several destinations, and local trains that run among the whole branch line.[3]

## Stations

[edit]

Km  | Image  | Station  | Code  | Location  | Coordinates  | Elevation

|
|
|
|
|
|

0  |  | Viluppuram Junction | VM  | Viluppuram | 11°56′33″N 79°29′59″E﻿ / ﻿11.9426°N 79.4997°E﻿ / 11.9426; 79.4997 | 44 metres (144 ft)
10  |  | Valavanur  | VRA  | Viluppuram district | 11°55′05″N 79°34′27″E﻿ / ﻿11.9180°N 79.5742°E﻿ / 11.9180; 79.5742 | 37 metres (121 ft)
22  |  | Chinna Babu Samudram  | CBU  | NH 45A, Villupuram district | 11°55′13″N 79°41′12″E﻿ / ﻿11.9203°N 79.6867°E﻿ / 11.9203; 79.6867 | 23 metres (75 ft)
30  |  | Villianur  | VI  | NH 45A Sulthanpet, Villianur, Villianur taluk, Puducherry | 11°55′13″N 79°45′30″E﻿ / ﻿11.9202°N 79.7583°E﻿ / 11.9202; 79.7583 | 11 metres (36 ft)
38  |  | Puducherry | PDY  | Pondicherry | 11°55′30″N 79°49′41″E﻿ / ﻿11.9250°N 79.8281°E﻿ / 11.9250; 79.8281 |

### Viluppuram Junction

[edit]

Located in Villupuram, Tamil Nadu, Viluppuram Junction railway station is where the branch line connects with the main line and several other branch lines that originate there.

### Valavanur

[edit]

Valavanur station is located in the Viluppuram district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, India.[8] It was once an import depot for the shipment of peanut oil.[9]

The station consists of 1 platform on a single track. As of 2019 there were plans to expand the station with a line block and siding to accommodate through service trains.[7]

### Chinna Babu Samudram

[edit]

Chinna Babu Samudram station is also located in the Viluppuram district. It was a former customs hub between the former British and French territories.[10] The station has three tracks, with a single side platform serving the southernmost track.[citation needed]

### Villianur

[edit]

Villianur station serves the town of Villianur. It consists of a single side platform serving a single track.[11] Like with Valavanur station, there are plans to implement a line block at this station.[7]

### Puducherry

[edit]

The Puducherry railway station, located in Pondicherry, is the terminus station.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Revenue, Madras (India : Presidency) Board of (30 July 1882). "Reports on the Settlement of the Land Revenue of the Provinces Under the Madras Presidency for Fusli ..." H. Smith at the Fort St. George Gazette Press - via Google Books.
2. ^ "Bradshaw's Railway Manual, Shareholders' Guide, and Official- Directory ..." W. J. Adams. 30 July 1896 - via Google Books.
3. ^ a b "Trains from Puducherry, Puducherry to Chennai Trains, Pondy Train". www.puducherryonline.in.
4. ^ a b "SOUTHERN RAILWAY—TIRUCHCHIRAPPALLI DIVISION" (PDF). Indian Railways. Southern Railway zone. 28 July 2017. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
5. ^ Prasad, S. (15 July 2019). "Anglo-French Textiles mills yet to come out of severe crisis". The Hindu. Retrieved 28 July 2022. "Anglo-French Textiles, once known as Rodier Mill, was established in 1898 by a firm with its headquarters in London. In 1899, the mill was even provided with a railway branch line connecting the Puducherry-Villupuram railway mainline"
6. ^ "Residents demand railway station". The Hindu. Puducherry. 6 January 2009. Archived from the original on 16 June 2013. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
7. ^ a b c Nair, Rajesh B. (30 September 2019). "Railways unable to keep pace with demand for services". The Hindu. Retrieved 28 July 2022. "Plans are afoot to develop the stations at Villianur and Valavanur so that the line capacity could be raised"
8. ^ Godfernaux, Raymond (1911), Les chemins de fer coloniaux français, H. Dunod et E. Pinat
9. ^ Dymock, William (1893), Pharmacographia Indica: A History of the Principal Drugs of Vegetable Origin, Met with in British India, Volume 3 Index and Appendix, Harvard University Press
10. ^ Illustrated Guide to the South Indian Railway (Incorporated in England): Including the Tanjore District Board, Pondicherry, Peralam-Karaikkal, Travancore State, Cochin State, Coimbatore District Board, Tinnevelly-Tiruchendur, and the Nilgiri Railways. Asian Educational Services. 30 July 1926. ISBN 9788120618893 - via Google Books.
11. ^ "Woman's body found near railway track". The Hindu. Puducherry. 3 October 2015. Retrieved 8 July 2016.

## External links

[edit]

* Villupuram–Puducherry line India Rail Info
* Metric Musings IRFCA Villupuram Jn. - Pondicherry M.G. Branch October 1967
* Villupuram–Puducherry trains ICRTC

*[VM]: Viluppuram Junction railway station
*[PDY]: Puducherry railway station