Mumbai: In a proactive move to address the anticipated surge in travel demand during the summer season, Indian Railways has embarked on a historic endeavor, operating a record-breaking 9111 trips of summer special trains, stated by the Ministry of Railways on Friday. The initiative comes in the wake of challenges highlighted in a detailed article published by FPJ on April 18th, shedding light on the struggles of travellers in securing confirmed train tickets. In response, the railway administration not only announced several additional special trains but also issued a comprehensive press statement on April 19th, outlining the proactive measures being undertaken to alleviate the summer rush.
According to press statement issued by Indian railways on April 19th, 9111 trips of summer special trains are being operated during this summer season. "This marks a substantial rise compared to the summer of 2023, where a total of 6369 trips were offered. An increase of 2742 trips of summer special trains this year, demonstrating Indian Railways' commitment to meeting passenger demands effectively" read the statement.
Details On States Connecting Special Summer Trains
"The additional trains have been meticulously planned to connect key destinations across the country, ensuring seamless travel on major railway routes. All zonal railways spread across India have geared up to operate these additional trips, catering to the summer travel rush from states like Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Odisha, West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi. The maximum number of summer special trains notified by WR." said an official.
"As of now 488 trips of special trains notified by Central Railway and 1878 trips by Western railway. Apart from that 254 trips notified by Eastern Railway, 1003 by East Central Railway, 102 trips by East Coast Railway, 142 by North Central Railways, 244 by North Eastern Railway, 88 North East Frontier Railway , 788 by Northern Railway, 1623 by North Western Railway, 1012 by South Central Railway, 276 South Eastern Railway , 12 South East Central Railway, 810 South Western Railway, 239 Southern Railway and 162 West Central Railway" read the statement issued by Indian Railways on April 19th.
"Planning and running of additional trains is a continuous process for which inputs are taken from all the communication channels 24x 7 like media reports, Social media platforms, Railway Integrated helpline number 139, apart from details of waitlist passengers in PRS system, to assess demand of trains on a particular route. Based on this requirement, number of trains and number of trips are augmented. Neither the number of trains nor the number of trips run by additional train(s) is static for the entire season" further read the statement.
Water Availability Ensured At Railway Stations
Apart from that during the summer season, Zonal Railways have been instructed to ensure availability of drinking water at Railway stations. Elaborate crowd control arrangements are made at all major and important railway stations. Senior officers are stationed at these stations to monitor all the activities to regulate the crowd in a systematic manner.
"RPF personnel have been deputed at originating stations to ensure Queue system for entry in General Class coaches. Skilled RPF staffs are deployed in CCTV Control Room to keep a close watch on the crowded areas and render real time assistance to passengers" said an official.
Similarly,Government Railway Police (GRP) & Railway Protection Force (RPF) staffs are deployed at foot-over bridges to regulate crowd smoothly in order to avoid stampede like situation during the heavy rush period.
"Indian Railways remain committed to providing a convenient and comfortable travel experience for all passengers. Passengers can book their ticket in these additional trains through Railway Ticket counters or IRCTC website/app" further added officials.
