From Saturday night, no local trains between Kharghar and Panvel stations for 38 hours

Central Railway will enforce a 38-hour mega block on the Kharghar-Panvel route starting 11pm on Saturday, resulting in 170 cancelled services and 700 trains being short terminated at Belapur. The block is necessary for the construction of two new lines for a western dedicated freight corridor.

Starting 11pm on Saturday, the railway stations on the Kharghar-Panvel route will be out of bounds to local train passengers as the Central Railway (CR) will enforce a 38-hour mega block. The block will be lifted at 1 pm on October 2.

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During this period, the CR will remodel the suburban rail yard at Panvel and construct two new lines for a western dedicated freight corridor on the JNPT (Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust)-Delhi route, railway officials said.

As a result, more than 170 services will be cancelled while 700 trains will be short terminated at Belapur. The officials said they have asked the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation and other public transport bodies to arrange for additional buses.

The effect of this block was felt on Friday when trains to Panvel were cancelled, and some were running late.

“The need for two new rail lines is a critical component for the corridor. As it’s a long weekend, we expect fewer passengers will be affected by this railway block,” a CR official said.

The first Panvel-bound train after the block will leave CSMT at 12.08pm and will reach the destination at 1.29pm on October 2. Similarly, the first local from Panvel will depart at 1.37pm and will reach CSMT at 2.56pm.