New Delhi, Nov 4 (IANS): In preparation for the Chhath Puja festival, Railway Board Chairman Satish Kumar has said that Indian Railways is operating 195 special trains over 13 days from the Delhi area this year.
This initiative aims to facilitate passenger travel during the festive rush.
The Railway Board Chairman also interacted with passengers travelling amid the Chhath Puja rush.
Indian Railways on Friday announced that they would run special trains across the country to ensure passengers can travel safely to their hometowns for Chhath Puja.
Dilip Kumar, Executive Director of Information and Publicity for the Railway Board, said that Indian Railways operated more than 160 trains on Thursday and planned to run more than 170 trains on Sunday.
Kumar said that special arrangements have been made at all major stations, including New Delhi, Anand Vihar, Ahmedabad, Surat, Baroda, Mumbai, Bandra, Vijayawada, Vishakhapatnam, Hyderabad, Chennai, and Bengaluru.
"The special arrangements are for people travelling to their hometowns during Chhath Puja. We are running various trains to Bihar and Uttar Pradesh to accommodate the rush. Yesterday, we ran more than 160 trains, and today we plan to run over 170 trains. Government Railway Police (GRP) and Railways Protection Force (RPF) staff have been deployed to manage the crowd, and Rail Sewaks are available to assist travelers with any questions," he said.
Additional coaches have been added to the special trains, and hundreds of CCTV cameras have been installed at the stations to monitor the movement of people.
"Tickets can be booked through both online and offline systems. Those unable to obtain confirmed tickets can access unreserved seats. We have restricted unnecessary movement of travellers, and Rail Sewaks are on hand to assist senior and physically challenged citizens," Kumar added.
Chhath is a significant festival primarily celebrated in the northern and eastern parts of India, including Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Bihar. Chhath Puja is a Hindu festival dedicated to the Sun God. It involves rituals and prayers to thank the Sun for sustaining life on Earth.