Travelling by train to Hubli or Chennai?

BANGALORE: Buoyed by the successful launch of infotainment on board in four day trains, the Bangalore Division of SWR plans to introduce the same in select trains to Chennai and Hubli.“We are tentatively planning to have this facility on Bangalore-Madras Shatabdi Express, Lalbagh Express, Bangalore-Chennai Express and Bangalore-Hubli Jan Shatabdi Express. Any addition or deletion in the list of trains will be decided in next couple of weeks,” told a senior officer of Bangalore Division of SWR.This facility has been successfully implemented Chamundi Express, Mysore-Dharwad Intercity Express, Tipu Express and Shimoga Express. The infotainment consoles are a new concept for providing entertainment and information to commuters, especially those of day time trains. But this is not suitable for long-distance trains, owing to the difficulty in fixing TV sets for sleeper coaches. Besides, it may cause some nuisance to the commuters too.The officer said there may be additional features, such as GPS in the trains. Content to Chennai-bound trains will be in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Hindi. In Hubli-bound trains it will be in Kannada and Hindi.Details are being worked out and tenders are being finalised to select the agency to instal the TV sets in trains. The agency concerned has to pay a fixed amount to the railways but can earn profits from ads. “The venture is a first for the Bangalore Division and we are confident that commuters will patronise it,” he said.