The Ministry of Railways has notified on 13th May, 2020 that has cancelled all mail, express, passenger and suburban trains till 30th June. People who had booked tickets up to June-end will get their refunds. Only Shramik special trains for the migrant workers and the special passenger trains running from 12th to 20th May will be allowed to operate. Read on to know the details.
What’s Happening?
In the wake of the novel coronavirus, railways had suspended all passenger train services since 22nd March, 2020 to curb the spread of the infection in the country. Now, the authorities have decided to extend the period for the halt in services. However, 15 pairs of special trains are running now from New Delhi Railway Station to Howrah, Secunderabad, Bengaluru, Patna, Mumbai Central, Ranchi, Agartala, Thiruvananthapuram, Chennai, Bhubaneswar, Ahmedabad, Dibrugarh, Bilaspur, Madgaon and Jammu Tawi. These trains will allow inter-state travel for passengers up to 20th May. The tickets of these special trains can be booked only through the IRCTC website, as the station ticket counters are shut now. All passengers of these special trains must download the Aarogya Setu app. IRCTC has already sold tickets of more than ₹16 crores for these trains. Also, about 300 ‘Shramik special’ trains are operating daily for the stranded migrants.
Also Read: Aarogya Setu App A Must To Travel By Train
What Else?
The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in India has crossed 78,000 mark. Given the rise in the number of asymptomatic patients, there are chances that if the infection will start spreading on a larger scale if the travel resumes. Even for the special trains, only people with no symptoms of flu will have permission to board the trains.
Also Read: Travelling By Train? You Need To Know These Rules
So, it’s best to stay at home for some more days. Once travel becomes safe, you might escape to a far off place to get over all the stresses of the lockdown. Till then, stay healthy, stay positive and keep making plans for the brighter days of the future.