The South Central Railway said it is running special trains to clear the extra rush of passengers to Chennai, Mumbai and Shalimar (Kolkata) from Hyderabad Saturday.
The Indian Railways Friday announced that a total of 116 coaches have been added in 37 trains to facilitate the stranded passengers amid ongoing air traffic disruptions caused by the cancellation of multiple IndiGo flights.
The Railways has also planned 30 special trains from Delhi and other metropolitan cities, it said.
“These 37 trains with additional 116 coaches have been deployed for a total of 114 trips. These trains will have different frequencies, based on demand, with a maximum number of days of operation for seven days. With a capacity of 4,000 passengers per trip, this arrangement would be a relief for many passengers,” said a senior Railway Ministry official.
Overall, arrangements have been made to handle 35,000 passengers per day through these trains, they added.
These 37 trains are spread in multiple zones — Northern Railway, Western Railway, Northeast Frontier Railway, East Central Railway, East Coast Railway, Eastern Railway and Southern Railway. These trains will run between December 5-13.
Initially, the Northern Railway zone added AC 3-tier (3A) and Chair Car coaches in high-demand trains such as New Delhi-Jammu Tawi and New Delhi-Dibrugarh. These long-distance routes are typically affected when flights get cancelled.
Later, other zones also followed the trend as the Southern Railway deployed several sleeper (SL) coaches, especially on the Chennai-Trivandrum, Chennai-Kollam, Chennai-Mumbai, and Trivandrum-Kozhikode routes. Similarly, the Eastern and Northeast Frontier Railways added a mix of SL, AC 2-tier, and 3A coaches on key intercity routes.
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The Western Railway added 2A coaches on trains from Mumbai and Sabarmati to New Delhi, both critical business routes.
The Northeast Frontier Railway added 3A and SL coaches on the Guwahati-Sairang (Aizawl) and Sairang-Guwahati trains. The Eastern Railway added SL and CC coaches on commuter heavy sectors such as Howrah-Raxaul, Sealdah-Jaynagar and Sealdah-Ballia, the official said.
Dheeraj Mishra is a Principal Correspondent with the Business Bureau of The Indian Express. He plays a critical role in covering India's massive infrastructure sectors, providing in-depth reporting on the connectivity lifelines of the nation.
Expertise & Focus Areas: Mishra’s journalism is focused on two of the country's most capital-intensive and public-facing ministries:
Ministry of Railways: Tracking the operations, safety, and development of India's vast railway network.
Ministry of Road Transport & Highways: Covering policy decisions, infrastructure projects, and highway development.
What sets Mishra apart is his rigorous use of the Right to Information (RTI) Actas a primary tool for news gathering. By relying on official data and government records, he ensures a high degree of accuracy and trustworthiness in his reporting. This data-driven approach has resulted in numerous impactful reports that hold public institutions accountable and bring transparency to government operations.
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