Cancelled trains spoil holiday schedule

Flooded rail tracks near Howrah station on Monday. Picture by Pradip Sanyal

Heavy rain for three days have led to the cancellation of trains to Santiniketan and Digha, making the plans of many tourists go haywire.

The Howrah-Bolpur Santiniketan Express, Howrah-Suri Hool Express and the Howrah-Suri Express via Sainthia were cancelled on Tuesday. As a result, the corresponding trains to Howrah were also cancelled, said an Eastern Railway official.

Two trains to Digha — the Howrah-Digha Duronto Express and the Kandari Express — were also cancelled by the South Eastern Railway authorities on Tuesday.

“The trains had to be cancelled because of waterlogging at the Howrah yard. Maintenance of the coaches of these trains could not be undertaken as the coach maintenance depot at Tikiapara, which is a part of the yard, is under water,” said an Eastern Railway official.

The travel schedules of hundreds of Calcuttans were affected.

Central government employee Manas Sengupta, who holidayed with his family in Santiniketan over the extended weekend, was to return to the city on the Santiniketan Express on Tuesday. “After reaching Bolpur we came to know that our train had been cancelled. It was impossible to get reservations on the other trains,” he said.

The Ganadebata Express, Sealdah-Rampurhat Passenger, Visva-Bharati Fast Passenger and other trains to Santiniketan ran on schedule but the cancellation of the Santiniketan Express had a telling effect since it is the most popular train on the route.

“Most people going to Bolpur prefer this train. The timing is convenient and it terminates at Bolpur, making it extremely popular,” said a railway official.

The trains to Digha were also cancelled because of waterlogging at the yard. “We came to know about the cancellation after reaching Howrah station,” said trader Chandranath Laha, a resident of Entally. He was going to the seaside resort with his family on a two-day holiday. They eventually took a bus to Digha.

Several other trains from Howrah were cancelled or delayed because of the waterlogging. South Eastern Railway cancelled about 15 pairs of local trains. The Danapur-Howrah Express was diverted to Sealdah.