E-Paper
10 things you need to know about Indian Railways Shramik Special train service
Under ‘Shramik’ special trains, a total of six special trains are scheduled to start on the labour day—Lingampally to Hatia, Aluva to Bhubaneswar, Nasik to Lucknow, Nasik to Bhopal, Jaipur to Patna and Kota to Hatia.
The centre has decided to run special trains to carry migrant labourers and other stranded people including students and tourists to their homes and a guideline issued by the home ministry carries details on the where and how aspect of the special facility which is likely to ease the sufferings of the daily wagers and take off a big burden from the state governments running relief camps to house them.
Here’s all that you need to know about the ‘Shramik’ Special Trains that will be run by the railways for migrants interstate movement:
1. Shramik Special train services will start from the Labour Day; first such special service was flagged off on Friday morning from Hyderabad to Hatia, Jharkhand.
2. A total of six special trains are scheduled to start on the labour day—Lingampally to Hatia, Aluva to Bhubaneswar, Nasik to Lucknow, Nasik to Bhopal, Jaipur to Patna and Kota to Hatia.
3. The Shramik specials will be available for migrant workers, pilgrims, tourists, students and other persons stranded at different places due to the lockdown.
4. These special trains will run from point to point (without any stops) on the request of both states—sending and receiving people—and will follow the standard health and safety protocols.
5. The Railways and the concerned state governments will have to appoint senior officials as nodal officers for coordination and smooth operation of these special trains.
6. The passengers will be screened at the point of origin of the train service and only those found to be asymptomatic will be allowed to travel.
7. These people will have to be brought to the railway station in batches in sanitized buses following social distancing norms and other precautions. It will be mandatory for every passenger to wear face cover.
8. The Railways will attempt to enforce social distancing norms and hygiene with the cooperation of passengers.
9. Meals and drinking water will have to be provided to the passengers by the sending states at the originating station. On longer routes, the Railways will provide a meal during the journey.
10. On their arrival at the destination, the receiving state government will have to make all arrangements for the screening of arriving passengers and for quarantining them if found to be necessary and their further travel from the railway station to destinations within states.
