‘All attention is given to Mumbai,Pune left wanting’

Shortening the time of travel between the two cities is one of the long pending demands. “A direct train via Kalyan and Vasai should be introduced. The Pune-Daund electrification project finally started in December but the project should be executed on time,” he said.

“Armed security guards in ladies compartments and compartments for differently-abled people is also necessary. A lot of theft is reported in these compartments during night,” he said. “Daily trains from Pune to Ahmedabad and Pune to Indore is another demand we have been pushing for. The number of commuters have been increasing every year and the current trains are jam packed. We also need daily trains so that they stop at small stations enroute to destination,” said Manjulata Mehta,Pravasi Sangh member.

World Malayalee Council president K Harinarayanan last month met Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal and discussed the long pending demand of introducing daily trains from Pune to Kerala. “There are over 4 lakh Malayalees settled in Pune and at present there are just two trains to Ernakulum. The number of Malayalees is increasing as Pune is an educational hub and also a nice retirement place. Hence,we have been pushing for daily trains and also want the extension of current trains till Thiruvananthapuram,” Harinarayanan said.

“Huge crowd during peek hours is also a major problem. Due to the crowd,many a times,senior citizens,women and children are not able to board the train. We have also seen people getting injured while boarding a train. Hence a proper management of the current system is also a must,” he said.

Activists said the price rise is justified only if better services are provided. “What we want is services that are worth the price we pay for. Price of every commodity is increasing but its quality remains the same. This needs to be addressed too. Instead of introducing new things,all we want is our long pending demands to be resolved,” he said.