Kannur: Taking Maharashtra’s lead, the state of Kerala is also returning its stake in the Konkan Railway. This move is part of the process to merge Konkan Railway Corporation with Indian Railways. The Maharashtra Government gave its approval last week, while Goa had already announced its decision earlier. Maharashtra, which holds a 22% stake, is to refund ₹396.54 crore. Kerala, with a 6% stake, is expected to pay back around ₹90 crore.

Indian Railways had long been urging the partner states to return their stakes to facilitate faster progress on development projects, including track doubling and tunnel upgrades. Due to delays and challenges in executing these works, Indian Railways is now moving forward with the merger plan. However, sources indicate that Konkan Railway Corporation was not officially informed of the share buyback decisions.

The total construction cost of the Konkan Railway project was ₹8,555 crore. Apart from the Central Government, the states of Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka and Kerala each contributed a share. The remaining funds were raised through bonds in the domestic financial market, both tax-exempt and taxable.

Benefits of merger

Currently, train tickets for journeys along the 741 km Konkan route are calculated by adding an additional 293 km (approximately 40% extra), charging passengers as if they were travelling 1,034 km instead of 741 km. This was originally done to help recover the project’s capital costs. Once Indian Railways takes full control, a unified fare system will be implemented across the Konkan route as well, eliminating the surcharge. This transition is also expected to accelerate key developments like track doubling along the Konkan corridor.

The Konkan Railway route stretches 741 km from Thokur in Mangaluru (Karnataka) to Roha in Maharashtra. It is managed by the Konkan Railway Corporation Limited, which was established in 1990. The route includes 72 stations and runs 50 train pairs, 28 of which pass through Kerala.

The original shareholding structure was as follows:

  • Central Government: 51%
  • Maharashtra: 22%
  • Karnataka: 15%
  • Kerala: 6%
  • Goa: 6%