Passengers fume as railways cancels 26 trains at a go

Rajamahendravaram: The decision by the railways to cancel 26 trains passing through Rajahmundry for 45 days is causing serious concern to the passengers. The decision has been taken against the backdrop of track repair work going on at various places in Nidadavolu, Rajahmundry and Kadiyam route.Passengers who made reservations for these trains a few days or weeks ago are expressing their anger over this sudden decision. “Didn't the railway authorities who cancelled 26 trains for a month-and-a-half know that this situation would arise at least a week before?”said Venkateswara Rao, a local businessman who made a reservation less than a week ago.

Ratnachal Express, Janmabhumi Express, Circar Express, Kakinada Town-Lingampally, Kakinada-Tirupati, Rayagada-Guntur, Machilipatnam-Visakhapatnam, Kakinada-Pondicherry, Visakha-Mahbubnagar and other express trains are among those cancelled.

Thousands of people travel to cities like Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Hyderabad, Tirupati and Chennai from Rajahmundry, Kakinada, Samarlakota and Tadepalligudem railway stations. The effect of the cancellation of these trains on them is severe. Railway officials suddenly cancelled the trains on Monday, though there were passengers who booked tickets for these trains only two days ago. In the wake of the cancellation of trains, the rush of passengers in RTC has increased. RTC depot manager Shabnam said that due to the increase in traffic on Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam routes, seven additional buses are being run. “We are ready to operate more buses based on the demand,” she said. People are alleging that private travel buses are charging high prices exploiting the needs of passengers due to the cancellation of trains. A paper mill employee M Nageswara Rao said that the ticket price from Rajahmundry to Hyderabad on normal days was Rs 800 to Rs 1,000 but on Monday it rose to Rs 900 to 1,200.