PINAKI MAJUMDAR
Jamshedpur, Oct 29: The Indian Railways has started running a slew of special trains to cater to a huge rush of passengers for the Chhath festival. The four-day Chhath, the biggest festival of Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh began yesterday with ‘Nahai -Khaye‘ and will get over on October 31 (Monday) with ‘Usha Arghya‘ (prayers to the rising Sun God).
Officials at the New Delhi-based Railway Board said this year around 250 special trains have begun to ply to Bihar, UP, Jharkhand, and Chattisgarh from various destinations across India.
“More than 1.4 lakh sleeping berths would be made available to passengers. Over 2,500 trips have been planned for 211 trains before Chhath Puja on October 30,” said an official adding that they are trying to ensure that wait-listed tickets get confirmed so that passengers can travel hassle-free.
On the directives of the Railway Board, help booths have been set up at almost all significant stations including Ranchi, Patna, Jamshedpur and Bokaro Steel City. TTEs and RPF are Manning the booths to help people with guidance and information. Ambulance service will also be available to cater to the sick and during emergencies.
In an attempt to prevent overcrowding in trains and a stampede-like situation, South Eastern Railway’s Ranchi Railway Division and Chakradharpur Railway Division had requested the Railway Board to either run special trains or provide additional coaches for trains heading for Bihar.
Bihar- bound trains and long-distance buses witness huge rush of passengers during Chhath.
It may be recalled that a huge rush of passengers for a Patna-bound train triggered a stampede at the New Delhi railway station in 2010, resulting in two deaths and eight injuries.
In view of the convenience of the passengers, Chhath special trains will be operated for Ranchi-Patna to clear the extra rush of passengers. Special trains will be run for two days i.e. on October 29 (today) and October 30.
The special train will leave Ranchi at 11:10 pm on the night of October 29, which will reach Tori at 1:28 pm, followed by Latehar at 1:55 pm, Barwadih, Daltonganj, Garhwa Road, Son Nagar, Gaya at 1:55 pm, via Jehanabad, will reach Patna on October 30 at 10 am.
On October 30, Chhath special train will run from Patna to Ranchi, which will leave Patna at 11:30 am and reach Jehanabad at 12:20 pm. It will reach Ranchi at 10:35 pm via Gaya, Sonnagar, Garhwa Road, Daltonganj, Barwadih, Latehar, Tori, Lohardaga.
Notably, Northern railways are running 84 special trains. Around 56 trains have been provided with additional compartments to increase the number of sleeper berths. All major cities from Delhi to Kolkata have been connected through multiple routes spanning Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, UP, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, and Bengal.
“Chhath festival has special significance in Jharkhand-Bihar. People here celebrate Chhath with great pomp. People spread all over the country and abroad return to their homes and native places in Bihar and Jharkhand for celebrating the festival. Due to this huge crowds are seen in buses, trains and in flights. Thanks to the Indian Railways for running special trains in various destinations for the convenience of passengers,” said Arun Tiwari, general secretary of the Chhotanagpur Passenger Association.
A senior Railway Board official said instructions have been given to all divisions of various railway zones for ensuring punctuality, cleanliness and passengers’ safety on running special passenger trains.
“This year we made elaborate arrangements to deal with passengers’ rush effectively during Durga Puja, Diwali and Chhath,” he added.
