A mobile app that provides real-time schedule of local trains from Howrah and Sealdah stations has recently been launched and is available on Google Play Store.

Railyatri, the app launched by a Delhi-based company, promises comprehensive information on the location of a particular train, passenger amenities at a particular station, platform number where the train will arrive, announcement of new trains and personalised alerts on service disruption.

"Although there are several apps and private websites that offer services such as PNR status checking and information about long-distance trains, ours is the first app to provide information about local trains," said Aparajita Mukhopadhyay, vice-president and business head of Railyatri.in.

In a city familiar with frequent train delays because of blockades and snags, the app would be of great help to passengers, feel the creators of the app.

According to Mukhopadhyay, the company collects realtime information about train movement based on GPS locations of users who have the app installed on their smartphones apart from the official information available with the railways.

"We have a user base of over a million from where we collect their real-time location status and update our network accordingly. The app even has a feature of sharing the journey status with friends, which enables them to track a user," said Ankita Sethi, the company's chief marketing officer.

City commuters feel the app is incomplete unless it includes Metro Railway updates. "Every other day, Metro services are disrupted. Although there are several apps that give information about local and long-distance trains, there is no app dedicated to Metro," said Paramita Dasgupta, a regular Metro commuter.

"We have started a dialogue with the Metro authorities regarding the inclusion of Metro timings and real-time disruption alerts. We hope to include that in our app in the next two months," said Mukhopadhyay.

Gold theft racket

Police busted an inter-district gold theft racket and recovered gold worth Rs 14 lakh on Wednesday while investigating a burglary at a jewellery shop in Madhyamgram on February 20.

Two men have been arrested in this connection. Police arrested Sattar Seikh from Nadia on Tuesday in connection with a robbery.

During interrogation, Sattar allegedly confessed to his involvement in the Madhyamgram robbery and said the gold had been sold to a man in Malda named Anirban Mishra. Police arrested Anirban from his house on Wednesday and recovered gold ornaments.