The Sengottai railway station is in the Southern Railways zone/Madurai division of Indian Railways and falls on the Virudhunagar to Kollam line. The station code is SCT.
History
The first idea of rail link from Tirunelveli to Kollam which was the trading capital of the Travancore Kingdom was conceived in 1873. The line was sanctioned by the Madras Presidency in 1899 and the survey was completed in 1900.The railway line was built jointly by South Indian railway, Travancore state and Madras Presidency.It was the ruler's desire to create a rail link between Kollam, the then commercial capital of his State and Madras. The meter gauge line from Kollam to Punalur was inaugurated by on 1 June 1904. The Punalur–Sengottai railway line was inaugurated on 26 November 1904. The construction of the metre-gauge rail route between Kollam–Punalur and Punalur–Shenkottai (Ghats section) along the scenic mountain terrain was started in 1873 by the British engineers and was completed in 1902. Travancore rulers in association with the British prepared the plan for the track through the challenging mountain terrain as it involved construction of long arch bridges over steep valleys and tunnels across the rocky mountains of Western Ghats.
The first goods train travelled on this route in 1902 and a train carrying its first passengers began its run in 1904. It makes for a thrilling train journey as it passes over five big bridges and hundreds of tiny ones while negotiating mountain streams and valleys. Passengers are also treated to a breath–taking view of the Western Ghats. The train also passes through five tunnels on this stretch, including the one-kilometer long tunnel between Bhagawathipuram and Arayankavu. The station at Punalur was equipped with locomotive service centre, Parcel and Timber Depot, Train parking bays, Storage Tanks for water and oil, etc. The scenic Punalur–Shencotta railway lies across the western ghats, providing a valuable link across the southern states. The journey through the western ghats is incredible.
Layout
The station has four platforms, of which all are functional. It also has six tracks used for passenger and shunting purpose.
Gauge conversion
The Punalur–Sengottai section is part of the 325 kilometres (202 mi) Kollam–Sengottai–Tenkasi–Tirunelveli–Thiruchendur gauge conversion project and part of the Tenkasi–Virudhunagar trunk route to Chennai at an estimate of ₹320 crore (US$38 million). The gauge conversion of the Thiruchendur-Sengottai section has been completed and is open to traffic. In Kollam Junction–Shenkottai section the broad gauge conversion is also finished. Now it is serving as the shortest rail-route from Kochi port to Tuticorin port. Infrastructure of the station will be changed as proposed in tune with handling demands and matching to the glory of past.[8][9][10][11][12][13]
Timetable
Trains Arr/Dep From Sengottai
Train No/Name
Origin
Destination
Sengottai Arr Time
Sengottai Dep time
Service
16791/TN - PGT Palaruvi Exp
Tuticorin
Palakkad Jn
12:40am
12:45am
Daily
16792/PGT - TN Palaruvi EXP
Palakkad Jn
Tuticorin
02:40am
02:45am
Daily
16101/MS-QLN QUILON MAIL
Chennai Egmore
Kollam Jn
03:45am
03:50am
Daily
16362/VLNK-ERS BI-WEEKLY EXP(SUN,TUE)
Vellankanni
Ernakulam Jn
04:15am
04:20am
MON,WED
16846/SCT- Erode Jn UR EXP
Sengottai
Erode Jn
--
05:00am
Daily
06682/SCT-TEN UR Exp
Sengottai
Tirunelveli Jn
--
06:40am
Daily
16848/SCT-MV UR EXP
Sengottai
Mayiladuthurai Jn
--
07:00am
Daily
12661/MS-SCT Podhigai SF Exp
Chennai Egmore
Sengottai
08:15am
--
Daily
20681 /MS-SCT SILAMBU SF EXP(W,F,SA)
Chennai Egmore
Sengottai
08:45am
--
THU,SA,SUN
06685/TEN-SCT UR Exp
Tirunelveli Jn
Sengottai
09:05am
--
Daily
06684/SCT-TEN UR Exp
Sengottai
Tirunelveli Jn
--
10:05am
Daily
06504/Madurai - Sengottai Express Special (UR)
Madurai Jn
Sengottai
--
10:35am
Daily
20683/TBM-SCT Tri-Wkly SF Exp (Via:Tirunelveli Jn)
Tambaram
Sengottai
10:50am
--
SUN,TUE,THU(From Tambaram)
06681/TEN-SCT UR Exp
Tirunelveli Jn
Sengottai
11:50am
--
Daily
06659/SCT-QLN UR Exp
Sengottai
Kollam Jn
--
12:00pm
Daily
06664/SCT-MDU UR Express
Sengottai
Madurai Jn
--
12:10pm
Daily
06660/Kollam Jn - Sengottai UR Exp
Kollam Jn
Sengottai
02:40pm
--
Daily
06658/SCT-TEN UR Exp
Sengottai
Tirunelveli Jn
--
02:55Pm
Daily
16102/QLN-MS QUILON Mail
Kollam Jn
Chennai Egmore
03:00pm
03:05pm
Daily
16327/Madurai - Guruvayur EXP
Madurai Jn
Guruvayur
03:20Pm
03:25Pm
Daily
16328/Guruvayur - Madurai Express
Guruvayur
Madurai Jn
03:40Pm
03:45pm
Daily
06687/TEN-SCT UR Exp
Tirunelveli Jn
Sengottai
04:10pm
--
Daily
20684/SCT-TBM Tri-Wkly SF Exp (Via:Tirunelveli Jn)
For the FY 2022–23, the annual earnings of the station was ₹79,966,250 (US$960,000) and daily earnings was ₹219,086 (US$2,600). For the same financial year, the annual passenger count was 484,203 and daily count was 1,327. While, the footfall per day was recorded as 2,391.[6]