Heavy rains disrupt several SCR tracks

Hyderabad: Due to incessant rains in the two Telugu States and a huge discharge of flood water from upstream, a few railway tracks have been affected at several locations across the South Central Railway (SCR) network. This has led to numerous cancellations and deviations of routes.

The inundation of tracks between Kesamudram-Intikanne, Tadla Pusapalli - Mahabubabad and Rayanapdu railway stations resulted in the cancellation or diversion of train services. Several trains were cancelled on the Vijayawada-Kazipet route. Around 177 trains were cancelled in the last two days; nine trains were partially cancelled. Also, 103 trains were diverted via alternate routes to avoid waiting in the affected section. With the halting of a few trains, several passengers on board faced difficulties.

Meanwhile, wide dissemination of information on train services has been taken up through Help Lines by the SCR. Help lines have been set up at Hyderabad, Secunderabad, Kazipet, Warangal, Khammam, Vijayawada, Rajahmundry, Guntur, Narasaraopet, Nalgonda, Miryalaguda, Nandyal, Donakonda, and Nadikudi in the Secunderabad, Vijayawada, and Guntur divisions to convey information on the current status of train services to the public.

According to officials, Arun Kumar Jain, SCR General Manager, has been personally monitoring the situation and regularly interacting with the concerned DRMs to assess the situation at ground level. Emergency control rooms have been opened at SCR Headquarters Rail Nilayam/ Secunderabad and also at the divisional offices of Secunderabad, Guntur, and Vijayawada, manned round the clock by a multi-disciplinary team of senior officers. Liaison is being maintained with the State government officials to monitor the timely forecast of heavy rain and the discharge of flood water.

Stressing on alternative arrangements, a senior SCR officer said train no 12728 (Secunderabad-Visakhapatnam Godavari Express) and also train no 12622 (New Delhi-Chennai Tamil Nadu) were regulated at Kondapalli station due to water-logging. Passengers have been transported by RTC buses from Rayanpadu to Vijayawada. A special train from Vijayawada to Visakhapatnam was also arranged. Around 1,500 passengers boarded the special train to Visakhapatnam.

A fare refund is being issued, with special arrangements at stations for passengers of canceled or partially cancelled trains, and for those affected by delays of over three hours or rescheduled trains. Passengers with cancelled trains will receive an automatic full refund if they booked online through IRCTC, he added.