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Bihar spends ₹78 lakh on evacuation of students from Kota
PATNA: Bihar incurred an expenditure of Rs 78 lakh (approx.) in ferrying its students stranded in Kota during lockdown because of coronavirus, as the last of the
PATNA: Bihar incurred an expenditure of Rs 78 lakh (approx.) in ferrying its students stranded in Kota during lockdown because of coronavirus, as the last of the 11 special trains carrying them reached Ara Friday evening.
Transport secretary Sanjay Kumar Agarwal said a total 13,473 students from Kota had reached Bihar in 11 trains, which operated this month on special request of the state government to the Centre.
Of the stranded students in Kota, 1,250 were from Patna, 952 Nalanda, 750 West Champaran, 600 each from Madhubani and Darbhanga, 572 Madhepura and 553 from Gaya, said Agarwal.
“In order to ensure that the students reach as close as possible to their preferred destinations, two trains from Kota reached Barauni (Begusarai district) and one each to Gaya, Darbhanga, Danapur (Patna), Katihar, Muzaffarpur, Motihari (East Champaran), Biharsharif (Nalanda), Saharsa and Ara (Bhojpur),” he added.
The transport secretary said the children didn’t have to pay for their travel and the state government made all arrangements to reach them as close as possible to their respective residences.
“We not only ensured that they reach their home district from the terminating station, but also made arrangements to drop them to the closest police station to their residence, where their parents came and picked them up,” said Agarwal.
He said the state government paid Rs 7-8 lakh (approx.) per train for their advance booking.
“Besides arranging for screening and food for students at respective railway stations, we also sanitised our buses to ferry them to their hometown without the children having to pay anything,” he added.
Agarwal said the students were happy that special trains had been arranged for them from Kota because bus journey otherwise would have been uncomfortable and cumbersome, especially with hotels and restaurants along highways closed due to the lockdown.
