Train to Guruvayur Express has been introduced recently which connects Thoothukudi with Chennai during daytime. South Indian Railway began a Madras – Thoothukudi service connecting with the boat to Ceylon in 1899. The station was declared a Model Station in 2007 and several infrastructure developments are in process. There is also another station, known as Thoothukudi Melur. Thoothukudi Airport is at Vagaikulam, from the heart of the city. It has flights to Bengaluru and Chennai operated by IndiGo, it operate daily four services to Chennai and one trip to Bengaluru. The State Government and Airport Authority of India plans to extend the runway and modernise the airport to handle to more traffic and bigger aircraft. The land acquisition process is completed and AAI is ready to start the expansion works. A new Terminal has been planned and the runway is to expanded to facilitate the movement of Airbus A320 and Boeing 737s. There was also a proposal in 2009 for a greenfield airport. Madurai Airport is the nearest customs airport with daily international connections to Colombo and Dubai. Thiruvananthapuram International Airport in Kerala is the nearest international airport located at a distance of about . V.O. Chidambaranar Port Authority is an artificial deep-sea harbour. It is one of the major ports in India. A luxury ferry liner, the Scotia Prince, was operating a ferry service to Colombo, Sri Lanka. Ferry services between the two countries have been revived after more than 20 years. Municipal administration and politics Thoothukudi municipality was established in 1866 during British times. It was promoted to a municipal corporation on 5 August 2008, bringing an area of within the city limits. The municipal corporation has four zones namely North, East, West and South. The corporation has 60 wards and there is an elected Councillor for each of those wards. The functions of the corporation are devolved into six departments: general administration/personnel, Engineering, Revenue, Public Health, city planning and Information Technology (IT). All these departments are under the control of a Municipal Commissioner who is the executive head. The legislative powers are vested in a body of 60 members, one each from the 60 wards. The legislative body is headed by an elected Mayor assisted by a Deputy mayor. Thoothukudi city is the headquarters of the Thoothukudi district. Municipal Corporation Officials Elected members Commissioner Thoothukudi comes under the Thoothukudi assembly constituency and it elects a member to