“We are coming back home as our train has been cancelled.” This little girl was overheard telling her grandmother about the change in travel plan on Tuesday afternoon at Howrah station. Picture by Pradip Sanyal

The lights dimmed on the Diwali holiday of the Khowalas on Wednesday, as the weary family of four headed from Mumbai to Deoghar waited for hours at Howrah station.

Niraj Khowala, who works in a private bank in Mumbai, reached Calcutta on Wednesday morning with his wife and two children to take the Howrah-Patna Janshatabdi Express. “We were going to my ancestral house in Deoghar where we celebrate Diwali every year,” said Khowala.

When Janshatabdi was cancelled because of the unrest in Bihar, he booked tickets on the Mithila Express. But even that did not leave the station. “All of us are so exhausted; we don't know how we will get to Deoghar,” said Khowala late in the evening.

The Khowalas were among thousands of passengers left stranded as most north India-bound trains from Howrah and Sealdah were cancelled on Wednesday.

Officials said services could resume on Thursday if the situation improved but some trains may still have to be cancelled because of shortage of rakes. The cancellation of Calcutta-bound trains from north India has resulted in the rake crisis.

Eastern Railway officials said more than 15 long-distance trains from the city — including the Rajdhani Express (from Howrah and Sealdah), Howrah-New Delhi Puja Special, Kalka Mail, Amritsar Mail and the Doon Express — were cancelled, while four were stopped before entering Bihar.

The Poorva Express was short-terminated at Asansol and the Jammu Tawi Express at Baruipara.

“The students’ agitation in Bihar has severely affected train services. A number of trains had to be cancelled to ensure the safety of passengers,” said an Eastern Railway official.

“The services will resume on Thursday if the situation improves. Some trains will have to be cancelled because of non-availability of rakes, but we have arranged rakes for the Rajdhani trains,” the official added.

Railway sources said the agitation had “completely stalled” services in the East Central Railway division. The spate of cancellations inconvenienced thousands of passengers, from the city and elsewhere, at Howrah and Sealdah stations.

A. Vidyarthi, on a family trip to Nepal, had booked tickets on the Mithila Express. “All my plans have gone haywire. Since we had booked hotels in Nepal, we will suffer financial losses, too,” grumbled Vidyarthi, who works for a private company house in Dubai.

Lokesh Jat was to leave for Delhi on the Howrah-New Delhi Rajdhani Express to attend a training session. “I have no clue what to do now. I can’t afford to miss the training,” said Jat.

South Eastern Railway officials said there were no reports of any disruption in train services on the Howrah-Mumbai route till late on Wednesday.