Four special Rajdhani Express trains which departed from different cities arrived in the national capital yesterday morning, while one train left for Thiruvananthapuram from New Delhi.
However, in the absence of public transport, many passengers were stranded outside the railway station with their luggage.
According to Northern Railway officials, the Ahmedabad-New Delhi, Rajendra Nagar Terminus-New Delhi, Howrah-New Delhi and Mumbai Central-New Delhi special Rajdhani Express trains arrived yesterday morning, while the New Delhi-Thiruvananthapuram special Rajdhani departed at 11.15am.
An official said all the passengers underwent thermal screening before they were allowed to exit the station.
The Delhi government on Tuesday had said that passengers without coronavirus symptoms will not be quarantined and be allowed to go home.
Those with “mild symptoms” will be asked to undergo “home quarantine” while symptomatic passengers will be
However, in the absence of public transport, a large crowd gathered outside the railway station with luggage and children, often flouting social distancing norms.
Many people complained that they were clueless on how to get home from the station, while some decided to walk to their destinations.
No official travel arrangements from the government were made to take the passengers from the station.
Meanwhile, many complained they were being over-charged by private taxis and auto-rickshaws.
A doctor who gave his name only as Faheem, who was travelling back to Chennai from Delhi, told IANS”: “The taxi charged us over Rs650 for 10km distance. Earlier we only paid around Rs 200 from Gautam Nagar area of Delhi to the New Delhi railway station.”
Narrating his ordeal, he said, “I used to stay in a paying guest to prepare for a test. But, despite the Delhi government’s announcement that tenants don’t need to pay the rent, we were forced to pay.”
Bhelji Bhai, who is travelling back to Gujarat along with his wife and a small child, said: “I paid Rs500 for an auto- rickshaw ride from Raghuvir Nagar area to New Delhi. Earlier, we used to pay Rs200 for the same distance.”
A student said as no public transport was available, finding a taxi or an auto-rickshaw was a tedious task.
Tanveer Ahmed, a resident of Srinagar, said, “We are travelling back to Jammu. We paid Rs700 to the private taxi to drop us till New Delhi railway station from Sangam Vihar area.”
Several others walked to the railway station as there was no public transport available.
The railways has issued a time-table for trains between May 12 and 20. These daily, weekly or bi-weekly trains will run between New Delhi and all major cities across the country, including Dibrugarh, Agartala, Howrah, Patna, Bilaspur, Ranchi, Bhubaneswar, Secunderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram, Madgaon, Mumbai Central, Ahmedabad and Jammu Tawi.
Also yesterday, seven South Western Railway (SWR) zone special trains ferried 10,059 migrant workers back home to five states, an official said yesterday.
The special trains are being organised following the Ministry of Home Affairs granting permission for the movement of stranded migrant labourers, workers, students, tourists and others.
from Gulf Times https://ift.tt/2LnWOwg
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