State BJP president P.V.N. Madhav thanked the railway minister, Ashwini Vaishnav, after the minister announced that operations for the South Coast Railway (SCoR) zone, headquartered in Visakhapatnam, would fully commence by April one, 2026. He recalled that the Central government had first announced the formation of the South Coast Railway zone on February 17, 2019, and that the Union Cabinet approved the detailed project report on February 28 in the same year. The announcement was presented as the culmination of steps taken over several years to reorganise rail administration in the region.

He noted that the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, laid the foundation stone for the zone's permanent headquarters at Mudasarlova on January eight, 2025, and that the project had been designed with an estimated cost of over Rs 1,830 million (mn). Until the permanent building is completed, operations are being conducted temporarily from the VMRDA's Deck building. Officials expect the phased move to the permanent headquarters to follow construction milestones and administrative preparations.

The new zone will include the Visakhapatnam division, carved out from the old Waltair division, together with the Vijayawada, Guntur and Guntakal divisions, and will cover parts of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Madhav said the launch was expected to accelerate improvements in railway infrastructure across the state and to facilitate the sanctioning of new trains and the expansion of platforms. The reorganisation was described as a measure intended to streamline operations and improve responsiveness to regional transport needs.

He projected that the development would create over 15,000 job opportunities and reaffirmed that the Central government remained committed to the development of Andhra Pradesh. Observers noted that enhanced connectivity from a Visakhapatnam headquarters could attract further investment and ease passenger and freight movement across the southern states. The zone's operational start, combined with ongoing infrastructure work, is set to influence transport planning and regional economic activity in the coming years.