E-Paper
CR cancels several Pune-Mumbai trains till July 17 as restoration work continues
Although train services have resumed on one restored railway line, repair work on the remaining two lines is still underway following the landslides triggered by heavy rainfall on July 6.
Pune: Central Railway on Thursday announced the cancellation of several trains between Pune and Mumbai till July 17 as restoration work continues in the landslide-hit Lonavala-Karjat ghat section. Until now, passengers were being informed of train cancellations on a day-to-day basis.
Although train services have resumed on one restored railway line, repair work on the remaining two lines is still underway following the landslides triggered by heavy rainfall on July 6. Railway officials said the temporary cancellation schedule has been issued to facilitate restoration work and help passengers plan their journeys in advance.
The affected services include the Deccan Queen, Deccan Express, Pune-CSMT Intercity Express, Hyderabad-CSMT Express, Hubballi-Dadar Express, Daund-Indore Express and Chennai Egmore-CSMT Superfast Mail. The Mahalaxmi Express, Dadar-Satara Express, Dadar-Sainagar Shirdi Express and several special trains connecting Pune, Hadapsar and Mumbai with Gorakhpur, Ghazipur City and Hazrat Nizamuddin have also been cancelled on specified dates between July 10 and July 17.
Heavy rain on July 6 triggered multiple landslides in the Lonavala-Karjat ghat section, damaging all three railway lines and halting rail traffic between Pune and Mumbai. After intensive restoration work, one line has been reopened, allowing train operations to resume, while work continues on the remaining two lines.
“Restoration work is progressing on a war footing, and our engineering and operations teams are working round the clock in extremely challenging conditions. We are making every possible effort to restore all railway lines and resume normal train services at the earliest,” said Hemant Kumar Behera, spokesperson, Pune Division of Central Railway.
Railway authorities have advised passengers to check the status of their trains through the National Train Enquiry System (NTES), railway helplines and official social media platforms before commencing their journey.
The Pune-Mumbai rail corridor is one of the busiest in the country, carrying thousands of daily commuters as well as long-distance passengers. While train movement has resumed on the restored line, services are expected to remain affected until all three lines in the ghat section are brought back into operation.
