Trains to run with two locomotives in landslide-damaged Mumbai-Pune ghat section
Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Thursday conducted a review of the ongoing restoration work in the landslide-damaged Mumbai–Pune ghat section. Following the review, the minister announced that all trains operating on the single line, which was successfully restored on Tuesday, will temporarily continue to run using two locomotives.
This special operating arrangement will remain in place because the slip line required for attaching and detaching banker engines is still out of service. The slip line suffered extensive damage during the recent landslides, making it impossible to perform standard banker engine operations.
Vaishnaw explained that running trains with two locomotives has become an absolute necessity under the current circumstances. Because banker locomotives cannot be attached or detached without the functioning slip line, the temporary two-locomotive system will have to continue until the damaged infrastructure is fully repaired and restored to service.
The minister highlighted that the landslides caused significant damage not only to the railway tracks themselves but also to the surrounding hillside. This extensive damage has made the overall restoration work highly challenging for the engineering and maintenance teams.
Currently, teams from Central Railway and Western Railway are working in close coordination with each other. Their joint objective is to restore the remaining two damaged lines at the earliest possible time, while ensuring that all train operations running through the affected stretch are conducted with maximum safety.
In addition to the track damage, workers are facing severe logistical difficulties. Vaishnaw noted that transporting construction materials to several of the active restoration sites has been very difficult. This is due to the combination of the highly challenging terrain of the ghat section and the severe extent of the physical damage.
To resolve these transport issues, railway teams are coordinating closely with both the district administration and the forest department. This inter-agency coordination is aimed at successfully moving heavy machinery, construction materials, and manpower to the affected locations so that the remaining restoration work can be completed without any further delay.
