Nagpur: With trains on track post-Covid 19 lockdowns, Railways is witnessing heavy rush of passengers defying corona scare. With Diwali just a week away, people are trying to book tickets so that they can spend the festival of lights with near and dear ones at their favourite destinations.
Almost all the train services were under suspension during the Covid induced lockdowns of seven months. Initially, the Railways had apprehended that in view of the coronavirus spread, people won’t make travel plans. But defying the logic, trains, especially Pune-Nagpur and Nagpur-Pune, are full leaving many on the waiting list during the Diwali vacation.
Faced with the heavy Diwali rush, the Railways is running extra special trains for clearing the wait-listed passengers. From Nagpur the major demand is for destinations in Northern India, to cities in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar and every other train that is introduced during the season the tickets are selling like hot cakes. Despite tickets being 10 to 15 per cent dearer due to special cess being charged by Railways, people are okay with it and booking has picked-up. The concerns of COVID-19 pandemic notwithstanding people do not want to be left out of festivities back home and hence willing to take risks. As of now almost 90 per cent of long distance trains passing through Nagpur originating from the city are back on tracks.
The booking data shows there is more rush in all trains starting from Pune from November 11 to 18. This indicates that many working in Pune will arrive here to celebrate the festival of lights. There will be a rush soon after the celebrations also.
