Rlys suffers ₹47cr loss due to Bihar floods

Eighteen trains passing through Bihar under the East Central Railway (ECR) division were cancelled on Tuesday due to floods that have resulted in a revenue loss of ₹47 crore for the Railways and claimed 514 lives in the state so far.

Among some important trains cancelled were the 12236 New Delhi-Dibrugarh Rajdhani Express, 14056 Delhi-Dibrugarh Brahmaputra Mail, 15648 Guwahati-Lokmanya Tilak Express (to Mumbai), 15484 Delhi-Alipurduar Mahananda Express and the 15619 Gaya-Kamakhya (Guwahati) Express. All these trains were to originate on Tuesday and most were to pass through Bihar on Wednesday.

A total of 509 trains, either originating or passing through ECR, have so far been cancelled between August 13 and 29 due to floods. “Till August 26, ECR’s loss has been ₹26.60 crore due to infrastructure damage of railway property, while more than ₹20 crore has been lost in passenger revenue due to cancellation of trains on account of floods. We will be able to assess the exact extent of damage only after flood waters recedes,” ECR general manager DK Gayen said.

He said Samastipur was the worst-affected railway division. “Train services between Samastipur and Darbhanga have been stopped since August 19, as Bagmati water level has crossed the danger mark at bridge number 16 between Hayaghat and Thalwara stations. Train operation on this bridge has become unsafe as piers are no longer visible and water has touched the bottom of the bridge girder due to unexpected rise in Bagmati water level.”

The problem was further compounded on August 23 when another bridge on Burhi Gandak river became unsafe due to rise in water level, he added. Gayen said a couple of ongoing projects, including the gauge conversion of Raxaul-Narkatiganj section and the laying of new railway line between Biraul and Harnagar, would be delayed due to floods. He added that it could take a few months for full restoration.