Special trains fully booked: Railways
NEW DELHI: Trends of migrants returning to cities by special trains from their home states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, among others, are encouraging, railway board chairman said Friday, adding that it is a sign of economic activity picking up after the lull brought about the Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdown that followed to prevent its spread.
Special trains returning from states with a huge migrant population have been booked full from June 26 till June 30, according to railway ministry data. This shows that migrants who had gone back to home states during the lockdown maybe returning as restrictions have eased.
Most special trains from states such as Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal to cities such as Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Bengaluru are running at 100% occupancy over the next four days, the data showed.
¨It is very encouraging to note that some of the trains which are moving from UP to Mumbai, Bihar to Mumbai, or UP to Gujarat, are showing an increase in occupancy. This is an indicator that the economic activity is picking up. We are talking to state governments and in the coming weeks, we will announce special trains based on demand,” railway board chairman VK Yadav said during a press conference.
At present, the railways is running 15 premium Rajdhani trains connecting Delhi with different parts of the country, which began on May 12, and 100 long-distance trains, which began on June 1. Yadav said migrant workers who are returning to cities are doing so by regular trains that are being run since June 1.
Railways till now has transported nearly 62.8 lakh migrants on board 4,594 Shramik Special trains that began plying from May 1 to ferry stranded migrants to their home states.
According to ministry’s data, a few special trains from UP, such as Avadh Express from Gorakhpur to Bandra has an occupancy of 121.60% till June 30. Kushinagar Express from Gorakhpur to Mumbai has an occupancy of 107.8% and Gorakhpur-Ahmedabad special has an occupancy of 121%. Similarly special trains from Bihar such as Muzaffarpur to Ahmedabad have an occupancy of 127.8%, and Muzaffarpur-Bandra 115%. Most trains from Bihar are scheduled to terminate in Mumbai, Delhi and Ahmedabad.
In West Bengal, special scheduled trains from Howrah to Delhi, Ahmedabad, Jodhpur, and Secunderabad are running at full occupancy.
Centre has extended the suspension of passenger trains, including express and suburban services, till August 12.
Yadav said it was not possible to resume regular trains services given the current Covid-19 situation. “More special trains will be added as per the demand on select routes,” he said.