Chengannur railway station (station code: CNGR) is an NSG–3 category Indian railway station in Thiruvananthapuram railway division of

Southern Railway zone Southern Railway (SR) is one of the eighteen zones of Indian Railways. It is headquartered at Chennai and operates across the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and the union territory of Puducherry. The origin of the Southern Rai ...

. It is located in

Chengannur Chengannur () is a Municipalities of Kerala, municipalityhttps://lsgkerala.gov.in/system/files/2017-10/localbodies.pdf in the Alappuzha district of Kerala, India. It is located south east of the district headquarters in Alappuzha and about ...

town of

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

. It is one of the busiest stations in the –––

Ernakulam Ernakulam () is the central business district of the city of Kochi, Kerala, India. It is the namesake of Ernakulam district. The eastern part of Kochi city is mainly known as Ernakulam, while the western part of it after the Venduruthy Bridge ...

route, primarily due to the

Sabarimala The Sabarimala Sree Dharma Sastha Temple () is a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Ayyappan, who is also known as Dharma Shasta and is the son of the deities Shiva and Mohini (female avatar of the god Vishnu). The temple is situated atop th ...

pilgrims. Chengannur railway station mainly serves the people of

Alappuzha Alappuzha (, आलप्पुळ) or Alleppey is a municipality and town on the Laccadive Sea in the southern Indian state of Kerala. It is the district headquarters of the district, and is located about north of the state capital Thiruvana ...

and

Pathanamthitta Pathanamthitta (), is a municipality, city in southern Kerala, India, spread over an area of . It is the administrative capital of Pathanamthitta district. The town has a population of 37,538 (as of 2011 census). The Hindu pilgrim centre Sab ...

district.It is situated in Alappuzha District.

History

Chengannur rail link came into existence in 1958 when

– metre-gauge railway line was extended to . The railway line between and via Kottayam was converted to broad gauge in 1976.

Significance

Chengannur railway station is the nearest rail station to reach famous pilgrimage places like

Pandalam Pandalam is a municipality in Pathanamthitta district Kerala, India. Pandalam is known for its connection with Ayyappan and Sabarimala. It recognised ''as the cultural capital of Travancore'', Pandalam hosts educational institutions rang ...

Aranmula Parthasarathy Temple The Aranmula Parthasarathy Temple is a Hindu temple located in Aranmula, a village in Pathanamthitta District, Kerala, South India, on the southern bank of Pamba river, the third longest river in Kerala. It is dedicated to the Lord Krishna, who ...

Parumala Church St. Peter's and St. Paul's Orthodox Church (also known as Parumala Pally or Parumala Seminary) in Parumala, Thiruvalla Taluk, Pathanamthitta district, Kerala, India, is a pilgrimage centre and mausoleum of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church. ...

Maramon Maramon is a small village on the Pampa River in Thiruvalla taluk & Thiruvalla Revenue Division of Pathanamthitta district in the state of Kerala, India. The nearest railway station is at chengannur (13 km) & Thiruvalla (16 km) Maram ...

and Manjinikkara Monastery .It is also the nearest railway station of 4 of the 5 Pancha Pandava Temples and Pandavanpara. The railway station has been declared as 'Gateway of Sabarimala' by

Indian Railways Indian Railways is a state-owned enterprise that is organised as a departmental undertaking of the Ministry of Railways (India), Ministry of Railways of the Government of India and operates India's national railway system. , it manages the fou ...

in 2009. It serves the people of 4 districts -

Kollam Kollam (;), is an ancient seaport and the List of cities and towns in Kerala, fourth largest city in the Indian state of Kerala. Located on the southern tip of the Malabar Coast of the Arabian Sea, the city is on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake ...

and

Kottayam Kottayam () is a city in the Kottayam district of Kerala, India. It is the district headquarters of the district and is located about north of the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. As per the 2011 Indian census, Kottayam has a population of ...

. The proposed Sabari Airport Cheruvally, Erumeli is 36 km from the station. Chengannur Railway station is the nearest railway station of The proposed Sabari Airport Cheruvally.

Major Trains Halting at Chengannur

* Thiruvananthapuram - Kasaragod Vande Bharat Express. *MADURAI -THIRUVANANTHAPURAM AMRITHA EXPRESS *THIRUVANANTHAPURAM -CHENNAI SUPERFAST *VELANKANNI- ERANAMKULAM EXPRESS *KANYAKUMARI- PUNE JAYANTHI JANATHA EXPRESS *VIVEK SUPERFAST EXPRESS *BANGLORE -KANYAKUMARI ISLAND EXPRESS *NAGERCOIL SHALIMAR EXPRESS *THIRUVANANTHAPURAM CHENNAI SUPERFAST MAIL *TUTICORIN - PALAKKAD PALARUVI EXPRESS *LTT -KOCHUVELI GARIB RATH *YESWANTHPUR -KOCHUVELI GARIB RATH SUPERFAST EXPRESS *VISAKHAPATNAM- KOLLAM JUNCTION TWICE WEEKLY EXPRESS *THIRUPATHI -KOLLAM EXPRESS *KOCHUVELI -NILAMBUR ROAD RAJYARANI EXPRESS *THIRUVANANTHAPURAM -VERAVAL JUNCTION EXPRESS *NAGERCOIL- GANDHIDHAM JUNCTION express *HUBBALLI KOCHUVELI EXPRESS * SMVT BANGLORE KOCHUVELI HUMSAFAR EXPRESS *VENAD EXPRESS *VANCHINAD EXPRESS *MAVELI EXPRESS *MALABAR EXPRESS *PARASURAM EXPRESS *HIMSAGAR EXPRESS *THIRUVANANTHAPURAM SECUNDARABAD SHABARI EXPRESS *THIRUVANANTHAPURAM SILCHAR ARONAI SUPERFAST EXPRESS *THIRUVANANTHAPURAM NEW DELHI KERALA EXPRESS.

Facilities

Cloak room IRCTC restaurant Wi-Fi connectivity Computerized Reservation counter Information counter Foot over bridge (2 no's) Subway Escalator Lift (at platform no: 1) 2nd class waiting room at Platform no: 1 Shelters for Sabarimala pilgrims Prepaid auto – taxi counter prepaid vehicle parking area AC waiting room - paid (30/- per hour) 24 hrs. KSRTC bus to Pamba during Sabarimala Pilgrim Season and also at 1st & last day of every Malayalam month

Future expansion plans

A new line linking Chengannur with via

Kottarakkara Kottarakkara (IAST: Koṭṭārakkara), also transliterated as ''Kottarakara'', is a town and municipality in the Kollam district of Kerala, India. Kottarakkara lies to the east of Kollam city centre. History Kottarakkara, also known in the ...

Kilimanoor Kilimanoor is a panchayat and a town in the Varkala taluk of Thiruvananthapuram district in Kerala, India. It is located on Main central Road, MC/SH 1 Road, northwest of the city of Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum), east of Attingal and eas ...

and

Nedumangad Nedumangad is a municipal town in the Thiruvananthapuram district in the Indian state of Kerala. It is the headquarters of Nedumangad Tehsil and Nedumangad Revenue Division. It is a suburb of the extended metropolitan region of Thiruvanantha ...

is awaiting approval from the Planning Commission. Another line to Pampa via

has also been proposed. A sub-urban service connecting

Trivandrum Thiruvananthapuram ( ), also known as Trivandrum, is the capital city of the Indian state of Kerala. As of 2011, the Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation had a population of 957,730 over an area of 214.86 sq. km, making it the largest and ...

is under consideration. New elevated rail line between chengannur and pamba is under process. An elevated rail line that can take Sabarimala pilgrims from Chengannur to Pampa in around 40 minutes. With the railway ministry giving green signal for the 60km project’s final location survey, a hassle-free journey through the scenic forest could become a reality in a few years. The proposed railway line is likely to pass through places including Chengannur municipal council, Mallapuzhassery, Aranmula, Kozhencherry, Cherukol, Vadasserikara, Ranni, Keekozhoor, Seethathode, Athikkayam and Perunad.

References