Rush on northeast-bound trains subsides at Kurla, Pune stations

Perhaps life is returning to normal, or those who wanted to have already left the city, as there was a drop in the number of passengers boarding trains bound for northeastern states on Saturday.

Perhaps life is returning to normal, or those who wanted to have already left the city, as there was a drop in the number of passengers boarding trains bound for northeastern states on Saturday.

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"On Friday, passengers started arriving since the night before. They barged into the train as soon as it arrived on the platform in the morning, and were jam-packed in the general bogies. However, on Saturday, the ticket holders managed to sit comfortably," said an official.

Subodh Jain, general manager, Central Railway, said: "The passenger rush to northeast at both LTT and Pune stations normalised on Saturday. This is lean period for us, in which 3,000 to 4,000 people travel in a train, and today the passenger numbers were between this."

The waiting list for LTT-Guwahati Express train leaving on Wednesday had 271 passengers, as against 1,000 on Friday and 832 for the Saturday's train.

Among the passengers was a group of workers from Pune leaving for Rangia in Assam. "Rumours abound that August 20 [the day Ramzan ends] is the deadline set by certain antisocial elements for our return, or we will have to face consequences," said Anshuman Narzaree, 22.