Amid safety measures, long-distance trains start ops
After 71 days of lockdown, the first set of outstation passenger trains operated from the city on Monday. The Mahanagiri special train was the first to depart from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) at 12.10am to Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh (UP), with around 1,700 passengers.
Eight trains of Central Railway and two of Western Railway operated from Mumbai on Monday. Passengers were asked to arrive 90 minutes before departure but many started to arrive three hours early.
They underwent thermal screenings and their luggage was sanitised before boarding.
“I had come to the city before the lockdown to meet my brother. I was not aware that the lockdown would be extended for so long. I’m happy to be going back home. I have got a food packet and water for myself as they will not be served on the train,” said Ankita Shukla a resident of Varanasi. To maintain social distancing, different entry and exit points for the railway stations have been introduced.
The railways on Sunday night had written to the state government to ensure protocol for passengers. “Chairman of the railway board, Vinod Kumar Yadav had asked the chief secretary to issue necessary instructions to district administrations to operate special trains,” said a senior railway official. The first set of passenger trains will arrive in the city on Tuesday.
Union railway minister Piyush Goyal had announced the operation of 200 special trains, starting from June 1. From the city, passenger trains including the Kushinagar Express, Kamayani Express, Mahanagari Express, Bandra Terminusghazhipur Express, Gorakhpurltt Express, Bdts-gorakhpur Awadh Express, Pushpak Express, CSMT-GADAG Express, Udyan Express, Hussain Sagar Express, and Nethravati Express will be operated.
There will also be 17 pairs of passenger trains between Mumbai and Ahmedabad.
78% SHRAMIK TRAINS FROM MAHA SENT TO UP AND BIHAR
As many as 621 or around 78% of the total 799 special Shramik trains that departed from Maharashtra till May 30 were destined for Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Of these, 426 trains went to Uttar Pradesh (UP) and 195 departed for Bihar.
Since the first Shramik train departed from Nashik on May 1, 799 trains have departed to 22 Indian states, transporting 11.54 lakh migrants. Around 9.13 lakh migrants are estimated to have gone back to UP and Bihar, and many more are still on the waiting list for Shramik trains.
Ramji Tiwari, former Hindi department head at the University of Mumbai, said, “There are at least 25 lakh north Indians living in Mumbai. Most of them are from UP’S eastern districts like Gajhipur, Baliya, and Jaunpur. Migrants have left Mumbai in distress and are unlikely to return soon.”