There is a queue at each of the automatic ticketing machines at the new Yatri Suvidha Kendra near New Delhi railway station’s platform number 16. A facilitator at each red-and-white machine about the size of a refrigerator, asks the same set of questions to every person who steps up — “Kahaan? Kaun si gaadi? Kis time? (Where do you want to go? Which train, When?)” The response, in most cases, is one from a list of destinations in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh: Patna, Muzaffarpur, Ara, Gorakhpur, Kanpur, Darbhanga, Gaya. Diwali is early next week, and Chhath soon afterward. Delhi’s Bihari-Purvanchali diaspora is headed home for one of the region’s biggest festivals. The permanent holding area built by the Railways on the Ajmeri Gate side of New Delhi station is intended for periods of extraordinary rush like these. The 6,000-sq m Yatri Suvidha Kendra has three zones — Pre-ticketing, Ticketing, and Departure. There are benches for passengers as they wait for their trains — none of them have reserved seats or berths. This February, 18 people were killed in a stampede after an unusually large crowd headed to the Kumbh gathered on platforms and an overbridge at the station. Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta inspected the facility on Tuesday. “As residents of Delhi go to their villages during Diwali and Chhath, lakhs pass through railway stations, and we have seen tragic incidents in the past… People will benefit from this large facility, which has water, washrooms, ticket counters, and different entry and exit gates,” she said. North East Delhi MP Manoj Tiwari, who accompanied the Chief Minister, said: “I am a Purvanchali… This is the first time that I have seen such a big facility that has been opened with people from Purvanchal in mind.” Vinod Kumar (35) said he was travelling to Prayagraj with his wife Suman Devi (33), and their two sons, ages 5 and 3. “We are not waiting for any particular train; we will get on to one that leaves in the evening. I have been doing this for many years. There would always be a rush at the ticket counter, no space to even stand… This is much better,” he said. Northern Railway Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyay listed the facilities at the Kendra: “More than 25 automatic ticketing machines, around 35 toilets for women and 20 for men, around 50 urinal units, and a washroom for the specially abled.” The Railways are trying to change the experience for those travelling without a reservation, Upadhyay said. “We are trying our best to receive and depart trains from and to Bihar and UP from platform numbers 14, 15, and 16 (close to the new holding area) so that people do not have to walk far… We are trying to manage more trains from platform number 16 so that fewer people have to use the escalators and stairs,” he said. On platform 15, passengers are kept behind a painted line to ensure there is no rush to board as the train is placed. Officials said passengers waiting at the facility will be allowed to walk to the platform between 15 and 30 minutes before the train arrives. “Around 50 additional Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel and 30 rail sewaks (commercial staff) have been deployed to assist people,” an official said. Several passengers expressed satisfaction with the facility. Jitendra Yadav (46), who said he was travelling to Asansol, West Bengal, said it felt as though he was “sitting in an airport”. Imran Khan (32), who said he was waiting to catch a train to Bhadohi in UP that leaves at 10 pm, said, “The facility is very nice, comfortable. I hope the journey is the same.” A woman who said she was going to Barrackpore, West Bengal, said it helped to have clean washrooms for women. A passenger sitting next to her quipped, “It is easy to get facilities, but their users must help maintain them.”
