Mumbai commuters angry over cancellation of Andheri train halt services, causing disruptions

According to a new time table on October 1, the WR decided to not ply the 15-coach Vasai-Andheri train on weekends.

Angry commuters halted train services at Naigaon station for two hours after the Western Railway cancelled a Vasai-Andheri local on Saturday morning. The agitation caused cancellation of 60 trains and delays.

Commuters halt a train at Naigaon station near Mumbai on Saturday. (Rahul Birhade)

According to a new time table on October 1, the WR decided to not ply the 15-coach Vasai-Andheri train on weekends. However, commuters said that they were not informed about it and demanded that weekend services be restored.

“The WR did not inform us before hand and we were shocked to know about the cancellation,” a commuter said.

Commuters were waiting for the 7.43 am train at Naigaon station. When they got to know about the cancellation, they jumped on to the tracks and halted Churchgate-bound trains.

Some of the commuters said that the Andheri train with fewer drops and less crowd provided smoother ride to their offices during peak hours.

The station also witnessed fracas when standees on a local train blocked the entry of passengers at 8:15 am. Personnel from Railway Protection Force and Government Railway Police intervened and defused the tension. A woman passenger fainted in the din and was admitted to a hospital.

“All Churchgate-bound locals from Virar are filled to the brim. There is no chance for Naigaon commuters to even board these train. It was just because of the 7:43 am train that we could reach office on time,” said another angry passenger.

To pacify commuters, the WR started a a special local for Churchgate from Vasai at 10 am.

Ravinder Bhakar, public relation officer of WR, said “Commuters came on the tracks and blocked Churchgate-bound trains from 8:05 am to 9:13 am.”

According to the new time table issued on October 1, the number of services at Naigaon station has been increased from 436 to 466 on weekdays. There are 436 services on Saturdays, as two 15-coach trains have been withdrawn for maintenance. Thus there is no drop in the total number of services at Naigaon on Saturdays, despite withdrawing the 7.43 service,” he said.