The Netravati Express, a daily train operating between Mumbai and Kerala, has returned to the Kurla LTT terminus. For the past month, the service was shifted to Panvel due to maintenance work at Kurla station. This change, which involved the train departing from Mumbai to Thiruvananthapuram and terminating at Panvel from Thiruvananthapuram, caused significant inconvenience for passengers from areas such as Colaba, Thane, Kalyan, Dombivli, Ambernath, Andheri, Borivli, and Powai.
Passengers often had to travel to Panvel by taxi during heavy rains, resulting in taxi fares that exceeded the cost of a third AC ticket to Kerala, effectively doubling their travel expenses. Additionally, the lack of adequate seating and washrooms at Panvel created further difficulties. This marks the second instance of the Netravati Express being shifted to Panvel for a month due to maintenance at Kurla station.
Mumbai Malayalees are concerned that once the terminus under construction at Panvel is completed, trains to Kerala, including the Netravati Express, may be gradually moved from Kurla. There is speculation that the frequent changes in the Netravati Express schedule are just “test doses”. All Kerala-bound trains, including the daily Netravati Express, the bi-weekly Kochuveli Garib Rath Express, Kochuveli Express, and Ernakulam Duronto Express, currently operate from Kurla LTT.
These trains reach Panvel via Thane and continue to Kerala via the Konkan route. The advantage of operating from th.