From June 1, South Central Railway (SCR) will be left with just three divisions instead of the current six, following the formation of the new South Coast Railway (SCoR) zone with Visakhapatnam as its headquarters. The Centre notified the new zone through an official gazette earlier this month.

As part of the restructuring, the Vijayawada, Guntur and Guntakal divisions of SCR will be transferred to SCoR along with a reorganised Waltair division of East Coast Railway (ECoR), which will be renamed the Visakhapatnam division.

However, select sections from these divisions will remain with SCR like the 108-km Raichur–Wadi stretch from Guntakal and the 142-km Vishnupuram–Pagidipalli–Janpahad section from Guntur. Together, these additions will expand the Secunderabad division by about 200 km, taking its total network to nearly 1,800 km from the current 1,600 km.

Post-reorganisation, the Secunderabad division will become significantly larger than the remaining two divisions—Hyderabad (around 800 km) and Nanded (around 900 km). This is despite 46 km Kondapalli - Motumarri section being moved to Vijayawada division. This imbalance has revived demands for the creation of a separate Kazipet railway division.

While the Railway Board has not made any official statement on the proposal, many within SCR believe the case for Kazipet is strong, given its strategic location on the crucial Grand Trunk route that connects north and south India.

“Kazipet lies midway between Vijayawada and Balharshah and serves as a major crew-change point. It has both diesel and electric loco sheds, along with key freight loading hubs linked to cement and coal industries in Ramagundam, Mancherial, Mandamarri, Bhadrachalam Road, Manuguru and Vishnupuram. There is also an upcoming wagon factory,” said a senior railway official, requesting anonymity.

Officials argue that establishing a divisional headquarters at Kazipet—already equipped with significant railway infrastructure—would ease administrative pressure, as the expanded Secunderabad division risks becoming operationally unwieldy. They also point out that the move would not require major new recruitment, since most facilities could continue on an “as-is-where-is” basis.

Railway unions, public representatives and residents of Kazipet and Warangal have long demanded a separate division, a demand reiterated by MP Kadiyam Kavya. Supporters argue that if smaller centres like Visakhapatnam and Guntur can have their own divisions, Kazipet’s claim is equally justified.

Meanwhile, the Railway Board which has unveiled a revised logo featuring 18 stars to reflect the total number of divisions after the reorganisation, has sought speedy transfer of staff to SCoR, with only 50% of the allotted 700-odd employees having joined so far.