The Sealdah division of Eastern Railway has announced several measures to manage the festive rush during Diwali and Chhath Puja, Rajeev Saxena, the Sealdah divisional railway manager, said on Wednesday.

Entry and exit

Entry and exit routes at Sealdah will be segregated. Entry will be through the main gate, Sealdah South station gate, and Prafulla Dwar.

Passengers from platforms 1–5 (main line towards Ranaghat) will exit through Prafulla Dwar, which gives direct access to Platform 1.

Passengers from platforms 6 – 10 (Bongaon-Barasat line) will use the North Gate for exit.

Metro commuters will exit through the South Gate.

An additional exit gate has been created near the parcel office. For mail and express passengers, separate entry and exit will be maintained through the St Ambulance Gate near the traffic police post.

“The move aims to prevent crowding and overlap between suburban and long-distance passengers,” said Saxena.

Holding area

A portion of the parking area will be barricaded as a holding zone for passengers waiting for long-distance trains.

“They can wait there until trains are announced,” Saxena added.

Help desk

Additional “May I Help You” booths will be set up at Sealdah, Naihati, and Kolkata (Chitpore). Additional RPF personnel and volunteers will be posted. Additional signage will be placed at strategic locations to help passengers.

Special trains

Four EMU specials will run on the intervening night of October 20–21. The trains will ply between Sealdah and Dankuni; Sealdah and Ranaghat; Sealdah and Barasat; and Sealdah and Baruipur.

Stoppage cancelled

The following trains will no longer stop at Bidhannagar Road station because of low passenger turnout:

• The Sealdah–Gangasagar Express
• The Sealdah–Uttar Banga Express
• The Sealdah–Alipurduar Kanchankanya Express
• The Sealdah–Malda Gour Express