Trains back on track as Jats end blockade over quota

Railway services have resumed in this region after Jats demanding job quotas ended their rail blockade, but officials said today that it would take time to restore "full normalcy".

Railway services have resumed in this region after Jats demanding job quotas ended their rail blockade, but officials said on Sunday that it would take time to restore "full normalcy".

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Stranded passengers heaved a sigh of relief as trains began plying again on Saturday evening after the protesters cleared the tracks.

Many stranded passengers at the Cantonment and Idgah stations here boarded the first available trains Saturday evening, railway spokesman Bhupendra Dhillon said.

Other officials said the situation will ease out in the next few days.

Demanding their inclusion in the list of Other Backward Classes to secure quotas in government jobs, the Jats had been blockading key rail routes in western Uttar Pradesh since March 5.

The protest was called off Saturday after the Allahabad High Court ordered the Uttar Pradesh government to restore rail services.

The protests had severely hit train traffic on the busy Delhi-Lucknow route, forcing most trains to take long detours.