As many as 969 employees of Southern Railway (SR) covering Tamil Nadu and Kerala have tested positive for COVID-19 till date and about 20 zonal employees have died, said General Manager John Thomas during his Independence Day speech on Saturday
Southern Railway General Manager John Thomas
Chennai:
Addressing railway employees after hoisting the national flag, Thomas said of the 969 employees, 606 have recovered while 343 are under treatment.
The senior official added that a total of 13,781 surgeries, including 2,790 major surgeries and 1,554 special surgeries, were performed in railway hospitals in 2019-20.
533 Sharmik trains ferried 7.22 lakh workers since May 1
Thomas added that the zone had operated 533 Sharmik trains, transporting 7.22 lakh guest workers from Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Puducherry to other States from May 1 to July 10. The zone had also put the lockdown period to good use by demolishing the worn out Elephant Gate bridge in 12 days, upgrading 4 km long Jolarpettai yard at a cost of Rs 20.67 crore, renovating century-old Brick Arch railway bridge in record 36 hours with precast bricks, and constructing subway in Villupuram – Tiruchy section by availing a short, 10-hour block.
During the 2019-20 fiscal, the zone had grossed Rs 8,571 crore, including Rs 4,587 crore from passenger earnings, which was a 2.3 per cent increase compared to the previous year’s earnings. As per the GM’s speech, about 1.02 lakh mail and express trains, 1.22 lakh passenger services and 2.12 lakh suburban services were run in the same period.