Southern railway second phase:

Upgrading work begins September 1

Irangika RANGE

Work on the second phase of upgrading the high-speed Southern railway line will begin on September 1. A Sri Lanka Railways spokesman told the Daily News that the Southern coastal railway line from Galle to Induruwa is to be shut from September 1 to carry out the construction work.

He said the Indian Railway Construction Company Limited (IRCON) which handles the construction work on the Southern coastal railway track has agreed with the Transport Ministry to carry out the upgrading of the stretch from Galle to Induruwa during the second phase.

"Though it has been proposed to shut the stretch from Galle to Kalutara for the upgrading work, we decided to close the railway track between Galle and Induruwa after taking into consideration commuter conveniences," he said. The railway track from Induruwa to Aluthgama will have to be closed for construction work during the third stage.