After Bandra Terminus Stampede, Railway Suspends Platform Ticket Sale In Delhi, Maharashtra To Curb Crowding

The Central Railway has also imposed a temporary restriction on the sale of platform tickets at major stations to reduce festival crowding

In the wake of the heavy rush during the festive season, Northern Railways has temporarily suspended the sale of platform tickets at stations in the national capital, including the New Delhi, Old Delhi, Hazrat Nizamuddin, Anand Vihar and Delhi Sarai Rohilla railway stations till November 6. The move came after nine people were injured at Western Railway's Bandra Terminus while trying to board a train to Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh.

Furthermore, to reduce the crowd entering stations, the platform tickets will also not be available at Ghaziabad Junction till November 6. However, people coming to assist elderly citizens, women passengers, or passengers who are not in a position to provide for themselves, will be allowed to drop them off at the platforms. 

The Northern Railways has also announced the implementation of special crowd management and control measures at New Delhi and Anand Vihar railway stations till November 7.

"In anticipation of high passenger volumes during the upcoming Diwali and Chhath festivals, the Delhi Division of Northern Railway has implemented special crowd management and control measures at New Delhi Railway Station and Anand Vihar till November 7," Northern Railways said in a statement. 

Platform Ticket Sale Also Suspended In Maharashtra 

Moreover, the Central Railway has also imposed a temporary restriction on the sale of platform tickets at major stations to reduce festival crowding. Platform ticket sale restrictions will be in force in Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Dadar, Kurla LTT, Thane, Kalyan, Pune and Nagpur stations with immediate effect, as per an official release. 

Western Railway said platform ticket sale restrictions have been imposed till November 8 at Mumbai Central, Dadar, Bandra Terminus, Borivali, Vasai Road, Vapi, Valsad, Udhna and Surat stations. "The restriction imposed to manage anticipated crowding during the upcoming Diwali and Chhath Puja festive season will be there till November 8. This step aims to manage crowding on platforms and ensure smooth passenger movement within station premises," an official said.

"Senior citizens and those with medical needs, however, are exempted from these restrictions. Passengers are urged to adhere to the new regulations for smooth and safe travel experience during the festive period," the official added.

Nine persons were injured at 2:45 am while trying to enter the unreserved Bandra Terminus-Gorakhpur Antyodaya Express when it was entering platform number 1 from the yard ahead of its scheduled departure at 5:10 am. Videos of the incident went viral on social media.

Special Trains For Gorakhpur

In another release, CR said it would run two additional unreserved trains between CSMT and Gorakhpur to clear the extra rush of passengers during Diwali and Chhath. This will take the total number of services run or planned for these two festivals to 583, it said.

The 01019 unreserved special will depart from CSMT Mumbai at 2:30pm on October 28 and arrive at Gorakhpur at 11pm the next day. The 01020 unreserved special will depart from Gorakhpur at 12:45am on October 30 and arrive at CSMT at 10:35am the next day.

They will halt at Dadar, Thane, Kalyan, Igatpuri, Nashik Road, Bhusaval, Khandwa, Itarsi, Bhopal, Bina, Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi, Orai, Kanpur Central, Lucknow, Barabanki, Gonda and Basti.