A railway junction at Elamanur near Tiruchi along the Tiruchi-Karur section. | Photo credit: Special arrangement
The Salem Railway Division has removed the announcement that was made in Kannada at Elamanur level crossing gate No. 69 located near Tiruchi and replaced it with a Tamil announcement on the request of Tiruchi MP Durai Vaiko.
The move came after Mr. Durai Vaiko sent a memorandum to the Divisional Railway Manager, Salem, on Sunday, asking him to take immediate action to replace the Kannada voice announcement with a Tamil announcement on the public address system installed at the level crossing. Although the level crossing is located in Tiruchi district, it falls under the jurisdiction of Salem railway division.
In his memorandum, Mr. Durai Vaiko pointed out that in the new public address system installed at the level crossing, the announcement was made in English and Kannada. “The absence of a Tamil voice announcement may lead to confusion among pedestrians and road users and undermine the effectiveness of the safety warning,” he said.
The MP asked the Divisional Railway Manager to take immediate action to replace Kannada voice announcement with Tamil announcement while retaining English.
In a media communication on Sunday evening, the MP said the railways had taken action against his representation and replaced it with a Kannada announcement with a Tamil message.
Published – 18 Jan 2026 20:45 IST
