South Coast Railway Zone to Begin Operations in 2026

The Union Government will notify the South Coast Railway Zone (SCoR), with headquarters at Visakhapatnam, on 1 June 2026. The zone will become India’s 18th railway zone and will cover railway administration in Andhra Pradesh through a new organisational structure.

Formation and Administrative Structure

The South Coast Railway Zone will include the existing Guntakal, Guntur and Vijayawada divisions from South Central Railway. It will also include a newly created Visakhapatnam division, which was earlier part of the Waltair division under East Coast Railway. The Union Cabinet gave ex post facto approval for the creation of the zone on 7 February 2025. Ex post facto approval is a formal approval granted after an action has already been taken.

Headquarters and Infrastructure

The headquarters of the new zone is located in Visakhapatnam. The foundation stone for the headquarters building was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in January 2025. The state government handed over 52.2 acres of land at Mudasarlova for the headquarters in August 2024. The project received Rs. 184 crore for its establishment.

Recent Administrative Developments

On 29 April 2026, Union Minister for Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw announced the notification during the groundbreaking ceremony of the Google Cloud India AI Hub in Tarluvada, Visakhapatnam. On the same day, he and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu reviewed the activities of the new zone at its temporary office in the Visakhapatnam Metropolitan Region Development Authority building. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu requested administrative changes by merging the Araku–Kothavalasa and Kurnool–Dhone sections into the new zone.

Important Facts for Exams

• Indian Railways currently has 17 railway zones before the South Coast Railway Zone becomes operational.
• Railway zones are administrative units that supervise railway divisions and operations in a defined region.
• Visakhapatnam is a major port city on the east coast of India and a key railway and industrial centre in Andhra Pradesh.
• Waltair was one of the important divisions under East Coast Railway before the creation of the new Visakhapatnam division.