The railway authorities have geared up for the forthcoming Kanwar Mela slated from July 20. Half a dozen extra trains would run during the pilgrimage to cater to the expected heavy rush of pilgrims. This year the administration is expecting over three crore kanwariyas to come to the holy city.
Plans are afoot by the railway authorities to run special trains from Haridwar to Rishikesh, Nazibabad and Bareilly and also for Delhi. To control the passengers’ movement at Haridwar railway station, the express trains would be made to halt for a longer period at Jwalapur and Motichur railway stations. These Kanwar special trains would ply from July 25 onward.
Speaking to The Pioneer, Haridwar station superintendent M K Singh said, “We are planning to run special trains to and from Rishikesh, Bareilly, Nazibabad and Delhi from July 25. Also the halt time of express trains like Yoga Express, Ganga Nagar Express, link Express and Hemkund Express has been increased at Jwalapur and Motichur railway stations.”
Meanwhile, in a review meeting held at Manglaur police station, it was decided by the thana in-charge Uttam Singh that the special police officers would be deputed to manage the Kanwar pilgrims. “Only those cops who have a good record would be given the cards of special police officer. The officers who perform their duty well during the mela would be awarded too,” he said.
Uttarakhand Transport Corporation (UTC) Haridwar depot has made arrangement of 12 extra busses to cater to the pilgrims’ rush during Kanwar Mela. This would prevent the pilgrims from scrambling for seats. Though the UTC had demanded 19 buses from the main office, a dozen has been made available. The rush of the Kanwariyas peaks for the time between July 27 and July 30, in the last phase of the fair, when Dak Kanwar ensues.
Notably, the UTC, Haridwar has 85 buses but a total of 75 buses runs on regular basis. The number falls short during the fests and fairs. Speaking to The Pioneer, AGM, Haridwar dept S S Chauhan said, “We had demanded 19 buses but got only 12. In case the rush rises we would demand more buses to tackle things.”