SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, Dec.1: The demand for restarting closed trains of Dhanbad- Chandrapura rail section has now got political momentum in the region.
After some social organizations, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) MLA Mathura Prasad Mahto met with Dhanbad Rail Division manager (DRM) Ashish Bansal and handed over the memorandum for restarting the trains on Dhanbad- Chandrapura section in the interest of people of the region.
The Railway Board had suspended trains’ movement on Dhanbad- Chandrapura (DC) line on June 15, 2017 due to underground fire danger to the track. Total 26 pairs of trains were running on the DC line at that time. Some of them were suspended or diverted from other routes.
However, the Railway Board reopened the track after 20 months and started maximum trains on track on June 19, 2019. But three trains; Dhanbad- Chandrapura passenger, Ranchi- Jalpaiguri and Ranchi- Howrah, are still waiting for the green signal.
MLA Mathura Prasad Mahto in his memorandum to the DRM has not only demanded restarting of all the suspended trains of the DC line but has also requested resume stoppage of trains at KatrasGarh railway station which was suspended during the Corona pandemic.
“Suspension of stoppage of Alleppey Express at Katras Garh railway station has caused massive harassment for the patients who go for treatment at Vellore and other hospitals of south India. Since Alleppey (down) does not stop at Katras Garh, patients of the region have to hire an ambulance after getting down from this train at Dhanbad railway station,” the MLA pointed out.
Alleppey Express (Up) stops at Katras Garh railway station but during its return, the stoppage has been suspended there.
The MLA has also demanded the movement of Patliputra Express, Vananchal Express and Dhanbad- Ranchi inter-city Express through Dhanbad –Chandrapura line.
