Railways To Operate Two Special Trains To Fulfil Military Requirements

There is no respite for passengers, who are stranded and unable to proceed with their travel plans as railways and flight operations are suspended further till May 3 in order to contain the spread of Covid 19.

A railway worker cleans a train carriage as a preventive measure against the COVID-19 coronavirus at a yard in New Delhi. PIC/AFP.

New Delhi: In a move to help armed forces meet their operational requirements at northern and eastern borders, Indian Railways has decided to operate two special trains during the lockdown, Army said on Thursday. The army is also discussing with the railway ministry for starting more trains in the coming weeks, according to the IANS report. "To meet the operational requirements of Northern and Eastern borders, two military special trains are planned to be run," Indian Army said. Both the trains will depart from Bengaluru. It has decided to run the first train on April 17 till Jammu and the second train to undertake the on April 18 to reach Guwahati. According to the Army the first train will start from Bengaluru and halt at places including Belgaum, Secundrabad, Ambala before ending the journey in Jammu. The second train will start and stop at stations including Belgaum, Secundrabad, Gopalpur, Howrah, New Jalpaiguri before terminating in Guwahati. The move will further help in the decongestion of category A and B training establishments at Bangalore, Belgaum, Secundrabad and Gopalpur besides boosting operational preparedness of active formations deployed in the borders. It also said personnel deployed in northern and eastern borders can be accommodated. Those who have completed a compulsory quarantine period and are medically fit  will be accommodated. Meanwhile, there is no respite for passengers, who are stranded and unable to proceed with their travel plans as railways and flight operations are suspended further till May 3 in order to contain the spread of Covid 19. According to the ministry of civil aviation, all domestic and international scheduled airline operations shall remain suspended till 11.59 pm, May 3. Indian Railways have also extended the suspension of its passenger services till May 3, as per Indian Railways officials. India entered the 23rd day of its nationwide lockdown on Thursday. The total number of positive cases in India crossed the 12000 mark and the death toll surged past the 400-mark.