Karnataka - Mangalore

Kannada makes its presence felt

MANGALORE: Kannada is finally in vogue at the Mangalore Railway Station; it has replaced Malayalam and Tamil on the computerised touch-screen passenger information kiosk.

It even figures on reservation/cancellation forms and electronic information boards now. For close to a year and a half, the touch-screen kiosk had only English, Hindi, Tamil and Malayalam. Official sources said two more touch-screen kiosks (with Kannada) are likely to be commissioned soon. Hitherto, commuters had to run from pillar to post in search of train information because they could not understand the language options offered.

Mangalore Railways has made significant strides in the last few weeks, much to the delight of passengers from the region, many of whom had been agitating demanding better railway facilities for the district and the region. The signboards of “Mangalore Central” and “Mangalore Junction” should be up any day now; a swanky new waiting room for passengers in transit is nearing completion. A visit to the station at night is a dazzling experience as there are two massive floodlights at the entrance.

Official gush that they are only doing their job but patrons of the railways from the region are heaving a huge sigh of relief. Their hopes having been revived, they are now awaiting the fruition of their other demands, including the starting of the Mangalore-Bangalore passenger train service. However, the sources, citing safety concerns, said that the Mangalore-Bangalore train is still some distance away from becoming a reality.

© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu