Rourkela, May 23: A "Shramik Special" train from Maharashtra’s Vasai Road to Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh lost its track. The train, instead of arriving at Gorakhpur, reached Rourkela in Odisha on Saturday, reported Times Now. Some of the passengers inside the train also tweeted about the incident. The train left Vasai Road on May 21. However, the Indian Railways has not issued any clarification regarding the incident till now. Shramik Special Trains Will Not Need Permit From States Receiving Migrants Labourers, Says Railways Executive Director RD Bajpai.
According to reports, driver of the train lost the way midway and ended up reaching Rourkela on Saturday morning. Congress leader RPN Singh also shared a video of a passenger of the train narrating his ordeal. Some netizens also claimed that it was impossible for the driver to make such blunder, while others claiming that there was a possibility that the railways by mistakenly boarded the migrants on a wrong train. Indian Railways to Use 60% of Its Converted Isolation Coaches Lying Idle to Operate Shramik Special Trains.
Tweet By Congress Leader RPN Singh:
Shramik Special from Mumbai to Gorakhpur, UP lands up in Rourkela, Odisha because the driver lost his way. Any resemblance to current government strategy is purely coincidental. Hope the exhausted passengers get home safely soon pic.twitter.com/Eg0cOqblbt
— RPN Singh (@SinghRPN) May 23, 2020
Passengers inside the train also complained that there was no water inside the trains. One of the passengers even tweeted that the train took a wrong route from Bhusawal and was going to Nagpur. He added that the after 23 hours of the departure, the train was still in Maharashtra. Indian Railways Says It Has Operated 1,565 Shramik Special Trains Since May 1, Ferried Over 20 Lakh Migrants.
Tweet By A Passenger of The Train:
@PiyushGoyal Ham log kal vasai se Gorakhpur jane wali special shramik train 21st ko pakde hai 23hour ho chuka abhi tak train Maharashtra me .aise me ham log bhukhe hai yaha tak pani bhi nahi pine ke liye pani nahi hai aur ye train Bhusawal se naagpur ke rout pe kyu ja raha hai
— Arun Gupta (@Arun07078361) May 22, 2020
Media Report Over The Incident:
Shramik train that was supposed to go to Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh ends up at Rourkela in Odisha. Railways yet to issue an explanation on the issue.
Details by TIMES NOW’s Kajal. pic.twitter.com/0dxMgqGru1
— TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) May 23, 2020
On May 1, the Railways announced to run "Shramik Special" trains to ferry stranded labourers, pilgrims, tourists and students back to their hometown during the coronavirus lockdown. Till now, the Indian Railways, operated close to 1,600 "Shramik Special" trains since May 1 and ferried over 20 lakh migrants back home. Out of the trains that have terminated so far, the maximum has been in Uttar Pradesh, followed by Bihar.
Initially, these trains had no scheduled stoppages during the journey, but the Railways now allows up to three stoppages in the destination states. The Railway Ministry ordered reopening of all the vendors and shops on railway platforms.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 23, 2020 12:29 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).