UP-bound Shramik special train diverted to Odisha to 'decongest lines'

Dispelling apprehensions that a Gorakhpur-bound Shramik Special from Maharashtra had mistakenly taken the route through Rourkela in Odisha on Saturday (May 23), Railway officials said that it was a planned diversion due to traffic congestion.

Hundreds of migrant workers had boarded the special train on Thursday from Vasai Road in Maharashtra for Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh and were baffled when it arrived at Rourkela.

Some of the passengers took to Twitter saying they feared that the driver had taken the wrong route.

“There is no question of the train losing its way or its driver forgetting the route. We were very much aware that it is going to pass through Rourkela station. During its halt, the train received water and other necessary things before proceeding towards its destination,” Rourkela Station Manager Abhay Mishra said.

He said there is congestion on different routes as a large number of Shramik special trains are being run to ferry people stranded in different parts of the country due to the coronavirus lockdown.

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Therefore, several trains are being diverted in order to avoid traffic jam and to ensure smooth movement so that people reach their destinations without being halted anywhere, he said.

Sources in the South Eastern Railway zone, under which Rourkela comes, also said in Kolkata that it was a planned diversion owing to traffic congestion on the original route. There is nothing unusual in it, they said.

As part of the exercise to clear congestion, the Gorakhpur-bound train from Vasai was diverted and it passed through Rourkela where it stopped for around 15 minutes to replenish water and other necessities, the Rourkela station manager said.

Another railway official said there was no reason for the passengers to worry as the Shramik trains are being run from one point to another without any stoppages.

If necessary, these trains halt at certain stations only to fill water and meet other requirements, he said.

50% of converted isolation coaches to operate as Shramik trains

Meanwhile, the railways on Saturday said 50 per cent of its 5,213 isolation coaches meant for coronavirus patients will now be used to run Shramik Special trains.

The officials said these non-AC coaches will not be reconverted into normal coaches, but will be used as “they are” for these services.

“We have so far converted 5,000 such coaches and we have 80,000 beds available. These coaches can be deployed wherever the states desire, but since they were not in use as of now, we have taken a decision to use 50 per cent of them as Shramik Special coaches,” Railway Board Chairman V.K. Yadav said on Saturday.

“However, the others are available for use as COVID-19 care centers. If required, even those used in the trains can be diverted for COVID-19 care whenever required,” he said.

In the order issued on May 21, the railway board said 60 per cent of isolation coaches meant for intervention of COVID-19 cases, railways may utilise them for running of Shramik Special trains. It is permitted by board.

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While making the modified isolation wards, the middle berths had been removed and the lower portion of the compartment plugged by plywood.

There is also a provision of partition provided from the aisle side for isolation of the compartment.

Due to non-availability of the middle berth, when in use, the trains with these coaches will have lower number of passengers.

Officials said all the equipment on board the coaches like oxygen tanks, ventilators and other medical items will be removed from them.

One significant change for travelers would be the availability of a proper bathroom and not just a toilet on board. The four toilets in each coach have been converted into two bathrooms by plugging the toilet pan and with proper flooring. Each bathroom will have a hand shower, bucket and mug.

“This is a win-win situation for railways. We are not reconverting the coaches into regular ones, but using them as they are by removing only the medical equipment on board. There is no additional cost that we are incurring. We will also remove the curtains. These coaches will come in multipurpose use since they are currently not being utilised.

If and when they are needed as isolation units, they will be shifted for use there,” a railway spokesperson said.

The Centre has, however, earmarked 215 railway stations for the deployment of railways isolation coaches to be used as COVID-19 Care Centers for suspected or confirmed patients categorised as mild or very mild cases.

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As of now, none of these coaches are in use.

Officials said modifying each coach into isolation wards has cost the national transporter around ₹2 lakh, while reconverting them into regular non-AC coaches would cost it Rs 1 lakh for each coach.

36 lakh migrants in 2,600 Shramik trains since May 1

Earlier in the day, Yadav said that the railways has ferried around 32 lakh migrant workers on board 2,570 Shramik Special trains since May 1, according to official data.

The Railways also said that over the next 10 days, it will operate 2,600 more trains ferrying 36 lakh migrant workers home.

It is bearing 85 per cent of the total cost of running each of the trains while the rest is being borne by the states in the form of fares.

According to data with the Railways, Uttar Pradesh (1,246) has received the highest number of Shramik Special trains, followed by Bihar (804) and Jharkhand (124) and Madhya Pradesh (112).

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Among the originating states, Gujarat (759) has used the most services to send migrant workers home, followed by Maharashtra (483) and Punjab (291).

On May 1, the Railways started the migrant special trains to facilitate the movement of such workers back to their home states.

While on the first day, four such trains were operated, it was escalated to 279 trains on May 20. In the last four days, railways has operated 260 trains on an average daily carrying about 3 lakh passengers.

(With inputs from agencies)