Garment suppliers look up to Railways for change in cargo handling rules

Garment suppliers look up to Railways for change in cargo handling rules

Tiruppur (TUP): Small scale suppliers of garments in Tirupur knitwear cluster are facing immense difficulties to transport the goods to their buyers in other States ever since the Railways stopped the loading of cargoes in passenger carrying trains that stop less than five minutes at Tirupur station last month.

Appeal

“We have now made an appeal to the Railway Ministry to change the cargo handling rules imposed in Tirupur railway station highlighting the difficulties faced when the facility of sending the cargo in passenger carrying trains, that was available for the last five decades, was abruptly stopped,” A. Sundaram, president of Tirupur Export Seconds Banian Owners Association, told.

The Association, constituting of members who trade the surplus garments generated from the export units and supply to domestic markets in various other States, pointed out that with this recent restriction, traders were forced to load the cargo either in Coimbatore or Erode. “Otherwise, we have to send the consignments by truck to the destinations. But that is a costly affair as well as time consuming,” Mr. Sundaram pointed out.

Restrictions

Following the restrictions implemented, cargo could not be loaded into any of the passenger carrying trains running towards Chennai direction as all of them stop only for less than five minutes at Tirupur station.

Among the trains going to Kerala direction, only Karaikal-Ernakulam and Bokaro-Alapuzha express trains stop for five minutes which means cargoes could be loaded only in those two trains at Tirupur. Other trains stop just for two minutes.

Railway sources said that unless a Ministry-level decision was taken, the cargo could not be loaded again in passenger trains that stop for less than five minutes.

“Actually, that rule has been there from time immemorial. It was implemented recently in the case of Tirupur as cargo loading was delaying the train departures and explanations were sought for delays from the higher rung,” said some officials.