Details of an elaborate plan was unveiled in a press meet on Thursday in the office of the Divisional Railway Manager of the Khurda Road Division of the East Coast Railways (ECoR) to meet the challenges of the huge rush of passengers for the Rath Yatra this year. It includes running of 82 special trains, rescheduling of regular trains and arrangement of special passenger amenities.
In addition six of the regular trains will be rescheduled, five will be diverted and six extended to Puri. ECoR has arranged exclusive passenger amenities for the convenience of the passengers.
ECoR has decided to run special trains from different parts of Odisha, West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh to Puri on the occasion of Rath Yatra , Sandhya Darshan, Bahuda Yatra and Sunavesa. This is in addition to about 25 pairs of regular train services.
As many as 35 additional ticket counters will be opened at Puri railway station and many additional booking counters will operate at Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Khurda Road, Brahmapur, Balugaon, Khallikote, Paradeep, Bhadrak and Jajpur-Keonjhar Road.
Puri railway station will have three additional inquiry counters with three passenger help desks set up near the buffer ends of Platforms in order to guide the passengers. Enquiry can also be made about the train running information on telephone No. 06752-226717.
Additional train timetable boards near the railway station and other important locations in Puri town,
Train Indication Boards at Puri railway station, use of Public Address system and distribution of leaflets will help passengers know about the time table and running details of these trains.
A temporary Mela Shed, covering an area of 1,800 sqm, is being erected at the Puri railway station which can provide resting and toilet / bathing facility to about 4000 passengers at a time.
A Food Plaza at Puri railway station, 130 drinking water taps with 4 water coolers are available on the Platforms there, additional food stalls at major en-route stations and sale of eatables through vendors will help adequate availability of food and water to the passengers.
More than 100 supervisors and staff will ensure proper cleanliness and sanitation in the station premises including the Mela Shed and the circulating area.
Medical Assistance Booth will operate in the circulating area of Puri railway station round the clock with five doctors and 30 nurses and other paramedical staff. Ambulance service will be made available as well.
Generator power cars will augment the existing stationary generator at the Puri railway station for ensuring uninterrupted power supply there so that lights, fans, electronic equipment and other passenger amenity services can run without interruption.
like in previous years, railways will provide trained workforce, breakdown materials, such as, Jacks etc., to attend any possible breakdown of Chariots during the Rath Yatra.
Over 640 railway staff and supervisors from all departments will assist the railway staff available at Puri.
They will be assisted by 30 Scouts and 22 Civil Defence personnel. 500 Railway Protection Force personnel, 750 GRP personnel supported by 300 home guards would be deployed round-the-clock with sniffer dogs.
Fire Service personnel will be available along with Fire Tenders at the station. 25 nos. of Fire extinguishers have been made available at strategic locations.
A total of 24 CCTV cameras will be installed covering the entire length and breadth of the Puri railway station in order to keep a close watch on anti-social activities.