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Kerala residents stranded in Ludhiana sent home on special train
Ferried to Jalandhar railway station on three buses, leave for Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday night
Around 90 people from Kerala stranded in Ludhiana returned to Thiruvananthapuram on a Shramik Special train from the Jalandhar railway station on Tuesday night.
The passengers included around 20 nursing students from Christian Medical College (CMC), Ludhiana, while others were employees of private companies and some labourers.
They had applied to travel back home on the Punjab Helpline Portal, following which they were called to the Amar Shaheed Sukhdev Interstate Bus Terminal in Ludhiana for the Thiruvananthapuram from Jalandhar.
Ludhiana district administration coordinated with the Jalandhar administration and sent these passengers there on three buses after their medical screening at the local ISBT.
Varghese, a nursing student, said she had been staying at the CMC hostel during the lockdown. “I didn’t face any problem, but as the government was providing the facility for stranded people, I decided to go back home,” she said.
Mohammad Fayaz had come to Ludhiana two months ago for work, but got stuck here after the curfew was clamped. “I got shelter at the mosque on Rahon Road where we were provided all facilities. I applied to return to Kerala after I got to know of the special trains,” he said.
Another passenger, requesting anonymity, said his company had allowed him to work from home, but it was inconvenient to do so from the paying guest facility. “So, he chose to travel back home for now. I will return after the situation normalises,” he said.
Assistant deputy commissioner Iqbal Singh Sandhu said three buses were sent to Jalandhar railway station carrying migrants from Kerala, while three buses carrying around 90 migrants were sent to various districts of Uttar Pradesh, including Aligarh, Meerut and Muzaffarpur.
