G20 summit: 310 trains to New Delhi cancelled/diverted, passengers left in a lurch
A lot of trains destined for New Delhi railway station have been cancelled and diverted. The connectivity to the adjoining railway stations — including Old Delhi, Shakur Basti — will be normal.
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As per details, so far, at least 310 trains have been either cancelled or diverted during the days of the summit, with railways officials stating that they were in the process of issuing full refunds for tickets on cancelled trains. (File) Passengers have been left in the lurch amid a flurry of cancellations/diversions of trains announced by the Northern Railway owing to security arrangements put in place at New Delhi railway station for the G20 summit from September 8 to September 10.
As per details, so far, at least 310 trains have been either cancelled or diverted during the days of the summit, with railways officials stating that they were in the process of issuing full refunds for tickets on cancelled trains.
Some of the major trains that have been cancelled include the Kalka-Delhi Express Special, Ambala-Delhi Express Special, New Delhi-Jalandhar City Express, Amritsar-New Delhi Express, Jalandhar City-New Delhi Express, among others.
A railway offcial said, “All Shatabdis will run as usual from Kalka and Chandigarh and there is no change in their timings. So far, more than 100, out of 200 cancelled trains, are linked to Ambala railway station. A few trains have been diverted to New Delhi Railway Station. We were told that security was being cited as the reason cited by authorities for such cancellations and diversions.”
As per details, the tickets of passengers, who wanted to go to Delhi on September 9, 10 and 11, have all been automatically cancelled. Although the railways claimed it was in the process of refunding the full amount for such tickets, many passengers complained that had received only a part of their fare back.
Sudhir Aggarwal, a resident of Sector 11 in Panchkula, said, “I received a message on my phone about the cancellation of my reservation on Kalka-Delhi Express Special train for September 10. It is an inconvenience. I am waiting for a refund now.”
Contacted, Senior Divisional Commercial Manager, Naveen Kumar Jha, said, “The fare of advance booked tickets are being returned after deducting clerical charges. A lot of trains destined for New Delhi railway station have been cancelled and diverted. The connectivity to the adjoining railway stations — including Old Delhi, Shakur Basti — will be normal.”
With trains being cancelled, some passengers have decided to now opt for direct taxis to reach the national capital. Some others said they would opt for buses for their travel, although they were unsure whether these buses would be allowed to cross or enter Delhi and what the precise guidelines issued by the Delhi Traffic police were.
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