Season’s first showers: CR services hit for two days on trot

Multiple failures at different locations following light rains in parts of the city threw the services off gear

Suburban services on the Central Railway (CR) remained disrupted on the second consecutive day on Thursday, inconveniencing lakhs of commuters during the morning peak hours.

Multiple failures at different locations following light rains in parts of the city threw the services off gear till late night on Wednesday. The services were running 30 to 45 minutes behind schedule during the morning peak hours on Thursday. While a CR official confirmed that the services were delayed on the CST-Kalyan section, there was no specific incident or reason for the delay.

Commuters complained that trains and platforms were crowded than usual and were taking a long time to reach their destinations. A commuter activist said his train took three-and-a-half hours to cover the distance between Kasara to Thane, which more than double that is usually taken. They also complained that there were no announcements at the stations with regards to delay. No information was given to commuters even through railway minister Suresh Prabhu instructed the administration to do so via social media.

Last night, the suburban services on the main line were completely crippled owing to multiple failures, among which point failure between Ghatkopar and Vikhroli stations was a major one. The services across sections came to a grinding halt for more than 90 minutes.

With the commuters having to go through a harrowing time owing to the paralysed train services, some members of commuter groups went to the CR general manager’s office to question him about the disruptions. They slammed the railway authorities for the problems . “Instead of focusing on such functions, the railways should concentrate on improving its services,” said Abhijit Dhulat, a commuter activist.

Meanwhile, on occasion of completion of two years of the Narendra Modi government at the Centre, the railway ministry launched the seven-day-long Rail Humsafar Saptah from Thursday and several initiatives to improve the services will be launched.

Last week, while reviewing monsoon preparedness, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis directed the railway authorities to ensure disruption-free services during monsoon . However, a few pre-monsoon showers have exposed the railway’s claims about their preparedness.