Thane: In a major relief for thousands of commuters heading to the Konkan region for the upcoming Gauri-Ganpati festival, the railway administration has set up additional reservation counters at Thane railway station starting today, Saturday, July 11, 2026.
Ganeshotsav is widely celebrated as the grandest festival in Maharashtra. Every year, lakhs of working professionals residing across Mumbai, Thane, and the wider Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) travel back to their ancestral villages in the Konkan belt. This year, the festival is set to commence on September 14, 2026.
Because Indian Railways permits ticket bookings up to 60 days in advance, the peak advance reservation period runs from July 11 to July 30, 2026. This timeframe traditionally witnesses an overwhelming surge of passengers at reservation centers, often leading to long queues and severe inconvenience.
Prompt Administrative Action
Recognizing the hardships faced by travelers, the Member of Parliament (MP) from the Thane Lok Sabha constituency, Naresh Mhaske, proactively took up the issue with top officials. MP Mhaske submitted formal memoranda detailing key commuter grievances to the Central Railway Manager (Mumbai), the General Manager (Mumbai), and Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.
Among his immediate demands was the setup of at least two additional booking windows at Thane to manage the massive seasonal rush. Taking swift note of the MP's request, the railway administration designated two new reservation counters directly in front of the Thane Station Post Office. These counters were officially inaugurated today by MP Mhaske.
Further Demands for Konkan Rail Connectivity
In addition to the ticketing counters, MP Mhaske’s memorandum to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw pressed for several long-term infrastructure and connectivity upgrades to accommodate the festive influx, including:
Introduction of a Special Train: A proposal to run a dedicated Thane-Sawantwadi special train, requested to be named the ‘Dharmaveer Anand Dighe Express’.
Station Halts: Provisioning operational halts for multiple long-distance trains at Sawantwadi to ease local commuting.
Infrastructure Completion: Expeditious completion of the pending developmental work at the Sawantwadi Terminus.
The opening of the new ticketing windows has been widely welcomed by the Konkan-bound community, significantly streamlining the holiday rush on day one of the advance booking window.
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