In a double whammy of sorts for the stranded North Bengal-bound passengers, airfare on Wednesday skyrocketed with sweeping floods literally washing away train and bus routes between Kolkata and Siliguri, sources said.
With North East Frontier Railways cancelling indefinitely all trains to Siliguri and back following subsidence of tracks in Katihar Division airfare swelled unprecedentedly with airlines charging as high as Rs 25,000 from Bagdogra to Dum Dum via Bengaluru.
Normally the fare should hover around Rs 3,500, sources said adding 19 flights operated on Wednesday.
Direct flight between NSI Airport, Dum Dum and Bagdogra were charged at around Rs 15,000.
“Already we are in a trouble after our trains to Siliguri were cancelled. We had to pay for our stay in Kolkata. Now the airlines are taking advantage of the situation by charging us exorbitantly,” said a passenger who was “forced to fly off to Bagdogra.”
Siliguri which is the only link between rest of India and North East remained cut off for the fourth day on Wednesday following bridge collapses on NH 34 and train tracks literally caving in at places like Sudani near Barsoi in Katihar Division.
Other passengers who could not afford flights remained stranded on platforms at Sealdah, Howrah, Malda, NJP and elsewhere even having to pay for using toilets in stations. The situation was particularly grim in Malda where the passengers who were spending nights on platform for the past four days gheraoed the station manager.
“We have no food for these many days. Only some NGOs are providing khichdi once a day which is not enough. Now they are making us play for using Railway toilets,” complained a Coochbehar-bound passenger.
Flood situation in North Bengal remained grim and threatened to get grimmer with rivers like Punarnava, Kulik witnessing fresh floods even as other major rivers like Mahananda and Teesta continuing to flow beyond danger level.
Meanwhile angry villagers looted relief materials from BDO office Bangshihari block in South Dinajpur district where most wards of towns like Balurghat remained under water for the fourth consecutive day. Even neighbouring town Raiganj remained flooded with citizens in most areas shifting to first floors of their houses.