A bend in the train to Kashmir: Parties argue that switch at Katra in Jammu ‘defeats purpose’

Railway officials have said that the decision is driven by security reasons, and hence passengers going to Kashmir would have to get off at Katra, then board a sanitised train for their forward journey. Similarly, passengers coming from Kashmir will deboard at Katra and get onto a sanitised train for their travel ahead.

Opposition leaders in the Valley have contested that this defeats the very purpose of providing “a direct rail connectivity” to Kashmir.

“It undermines the much-touted promise of convenience for Kashmiris,” Peoples Democratic Party general secretary Khurshid Alam said. “For years, we were told that train services to Kashmir would benefit the common masses and ease travel. This latest directive shows that Kashmiris are still far from experiencing any real travel convenience. The train services, which were inaugurated amid great fanfare, are turning out to be nothing more than a facade.”

In his first reaction to criticism by the Opposition on the long-promised rail link on these grounds, Abdullah said: “If it is necessary for security, then I don’t think anyone should object… The people who are travelling on the train will also want that there is no accident or attack, that there is no danger to their lives. And we also want there to be no danger to the train.”

However, the CM was slammed for this. “The change of train in Katra erodes the train of all its psychological relevance. And I would love to know what they will do security related in Katra that they can’t do in Srinagar,” Peoples Conference president Sajad Gani Lone said.

With Abdullah sharing striking bonhomie with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the inauguration of a key highway tunnel this week, Lone added: “Please give us all a break. Stop justifying everything and anything that the BJP does. By justifying (the) security excuse you can virtually justify everything. That is what current and past governments have done… I per se am not surprised at your right wing views on security issues then and now – you sound like Delhi’s man in Kashmir.”

The CM quickly issued a second statement then, saying they would oppose any move for a mandatory change of trains at Katra. “Just to remove any chance of any misunderstanding, while we understand the need to secure the train & the passengers who will travel using it, making passengers change trains will defeat the very purpose of the line and render the thousands of crores of investment pointless,” Abdullah posted. “Check the train/passengers in Katra or Jammu sure but NO change of train will be supported by us. That said, there is no concrete proposal & when there is, we will give our inputs/suggestions,” he said.

Traders in Kashmir are also confused about what happens to their fruit consignments, with one of the main reasons behind the push for a direct rail link being that it would help the Valley’s horticulture industry by providing quick and easy access to markets outside Jammu and Kashmir. There is no clarity yet on whether the goods train, when they start, would also need switching.

The BJP, which has been underlining that the rail network is another step bringing Kashmir “closer” to Delhi under the Modi government, claims the change of trains at Katra is a “temporary” arrangement.

“The decision appears to have been taken so as to monitor the situation during the initial days of running a train between the Katra-Srinagar stretch,” BJP spokesperson Arun Gupta said. “While the train is already operational between Delhi and Katra, the railway track between Katra-Srinagar has to be secured and it will be difficult to do so during night. This is the reason the Railways has decided to ask Kashmir-bound passengers from Delhi to change trains at Katra. As things stabilise, Kashmir will have a direct train service from Delhi,” Gupta said.

Meanwhile, the Jammu Chamber of Commerce and Industries, which has given representations to the government against a direct train to Kashmir saying it would hurt tourism in Jammu, has demanded that the changeover happen at the Jammu Railway Station instead of Katra.

“The change of train en route to Srinagar is not to the benefit of either the people of Kashmir or Jammu,” the Chamber president, also called Arun Gupta, said. “In case the train on the route is changed at Jammu, the people of Kashmir can directly come to Jammu and vice-versa.”

Gupta added that they would write a letter to the PM and Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw seeking the same.