Union Railway Minister Sadanand Gowda’s railway budget promised little for the residents and the business community of the steel city. However, it came as a relief for Jamshedpur residents as the budget announced a direct weekly train between Tatanagar and Baiyyappanahali (Near Bangalore).
“The existing Tatanagar-Yeshwantpur Express (near Bangalore) (weekly) is unable to cater to the rush of passengers especially students and patients. We had on several occasion requested the railway authorities for increasing the frequency of the train. But, introduction of a new train in the same route will immensely benefit the passengers,” said Vijay Anand Moonka, vice-president of the Singhbhum Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) and chairman of the trade outfit’s railway committee.
Railway authorities at Garden Reach, headquarters of South Eastern Railway (SER) said the new train announced in the budget will either run on Wednesday or Thursday. The SCCI gave thumbs down to the budget for it did not have any mention of the long-pending Kandra-Namkum railway line project. “We were much hopeful that the Modi Government will atleast take up the important railway project which will reduce the travel time between Ranchi and Jamshedpur by over one hour but it did not happen. Moreover, all our outstanding demand for a train to Jaipur, Hyderabad, an air-conditioned train to Howrah from Tatanagar remains pending,” said Suresh Sonthalia, the SCCI president.
“Getting tickets online through e-ticketing system is a big problem for passengers. The announcement in the budget that it can handle 7,000 bookings per minute will benefit the passengers. Moreover, recruitment of 4,000 women RPF constables will ensure proper safety and security of women passengers in running trains,” said UK Srivastava, a senior functionary of the Chhotanagpur Passenger Association.