Centre rules out Keralam's SilverLine, High Speed Rail Corridor and Kanjikode Coach Factory

New Delhi, India (Rail & Metro Today): The long-pending proposal for a railway coach manufacturing factory at Kanjikode in Palakkad has been formally ruled out by the Central Government, bringing an end to Kerala’s more than four-decade wait for the project.

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha, said the proposed coach factory would not be taken forward as the existing coach manufacturing capacity in the country is considered sufficient to meet railway requirements.

The decision is a setback for Kerala, which had expected the project to emerge as a major industrial and employment-generating initiative in Palakkad.

228 Acres to Be Reserved for Future Railway Projects

The Railway Minister said that approximately 228 acres of land acquired by the Railways at Kanjikode for the proposed factory would not be returned but would instead be reserved for future railway projects.

Vaishnaw said Indian Railways currently has adequate coach manufacturing facilities, including units at Raebareli, Kanchrapara and Sonipat, and therefore does not require an additional coach factory at Kanjikode.

The decision effectively closes a project that has remained on the drawing board through several governments and railway administrations.

Kanjikode Coach Factory: A 40-Year-Old Promise

The history of the Kanjikode coach factory dates back to 1982, when then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi announced the project during an Assembly election campaign meeting at Kotta Maidan in Palakkad.

Following her assassination in 1984, the proposed project was shifted to Kapurthala in Punjab, where then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi laid the foundation stone in 1985 for a project estimated at ₹423 crore.

The proposal resurfaced more than two decades later in the 2008–09 Railway Budget presented by then Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav.

The Kerala government subsequently acquired land for the project. During the tenure of the V.S. Achuthanandan government, around 439 acres were acquired, while the Railways later acquired approximately 230 acres after paying compensation during the tenure of Chief Minister Oommen Chandy.

In February 2012, then Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi laid the foundation stone for the proposed factory in the presence of Oommen Chandy.

Despite these developments, the project never progressed to actual construction.

SilverLine and Sreedharan’s High-Speed Rail Proposal Also Ruled Out

The Railway Minister's response also addressed Kerala's other major railway proposals.

Vaishnaw said the SilverLine semi-high-speed rail project would not be implemented, stating that the Kerala government had decided not to proceed with the project.

The alternative high-speed rail proposal associated with E. Sreedharan has also been ruled out in its existing form. According to the minister, the state government withdrew from the proposal after an expert committee concluded that it could not be implemented in its proposed configuration.

This means that two of Kerala's major proposed high-speed passenger rail initiatives remain off the government's implementation agenda.

Railways Plans 873-km Expansion in Kerala

While the coach factory and high-speed rail proposals have been dropped, the Centre said railway infrastructure development in Kerala would continue.

Vaishnaw said the Railways would accelerate development and survey work covering around 873 km of railway projects in the state.

Surveys for proposed four-tracking projects would also be completed at the earliest, while priority would be given to introducing additional train services.

However, land acquisition remains a significant challenge for railway expansion in the state.

Land Acquisition Remains Major Challenge

According to the Railway Minister, approximately 618 hectares of land are required for ongoing railway projects in Kerala, but only 78 hectares have been acquired so far.

The Centre has already transferred ₹1,976 crore to the Kerala government towards land acquisition, according to the minister.

The slow pace of land acquisition could therefore continue to influence the timelines of several railway infrastructure projects in the state.

End of a Long-Pending Industrial Vision

The closure of the Kanjikode coach factory proposal marks the end of a project that had remained associated with Kerala's industrial development aspirations for more than 40 years.

For Palakkad, the proposed factory was expected to create direct and indirect employment while supporting a broader railway manufacturing ecosystem involving suppliers, engineering firms and ancillary industries.

With the Railways now citing sufficient existing manufacturing capacity as the reason for abandoning the project, the 228 acres at Kanjikode will instead remain reserved for future railway requirements.

The decision also shifts Kerala's immediate railway development focus towards capacity expansion, track infrastructure, land acquisition and additional train services, rather than establishing a new large-scale railway manufacturing facility in the state.