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'No plan to curtail train services': Railways
When nationwide lockdown was announced on March 24 last year, the Indian railways, for the first time since its inception, shut down all its services.
Indian Railways’ top official said on Friday there were no plans to stop train services in view of the coronavirus pandemic, which has led to authorities imposing several restrictions across the country on the movement of people. Railway Board chairperson Suneet Sharma cleared the air around the government body's plan amid rising cases of the infection.
Talking specifically about Maharashtra, one of the worst-hit regions by Covid-19, Sharma said there was no request from the state government to curb train services, including those of suburban trains. He also said there was no shortage of trains and the crowd seen on stations was usual during these months.
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"Crowds seen at railway stations is a result of a normal surge seen during these months, wherever there is a surge in demand we will increase trains. There is no shortage of trains for those who want to travel. I assure everyone that trains will be provided on demand wherever the need arises," he said.
Watch: Plans to curtail train services? Exodus amid Covid surge? Railways clarifies
Currently, the Indian Railways is running total 1402 specials train services on an average per day, according to a release issued by the Ministry of Railways. "Total 5381 suburban train services and 830 passenger train services are also operational. Apart from this, 28 special trains are being operated as clones of highly patronized trains with high patronage," it read.
When the nationwide lockdown was announced on March 24 last year, the Indian Railways, for the first time since its inception, shut down all its services, leaving thousands of migrants stranded far from their homes.
The Railways' clarification comes as the centre and various state governments are imposing new Covid-19 restrictions amid the second wave of infections. States of Maharashtra, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat among others have either imposed a statewide night curfew or have announced partial lockdowns in their cities to curb the spread of the infection. The national capital too, imposed a night curfew from 10pm to 5am on April 6.
