Siliguri, Jan. 6: Tired of waiting for the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) authorities to re-promote Oodlabari halt to a station, area residents have decided to call an indefinite rail roko and hunger strike from April 1.

The station, where filmmaker Satyajit Ray shot Kapurush Mahapurush, was demoted to a halt in September 1998. The downgrade of this station, which was the lifeline to the once economically-vibrant area under Alipurduar division of NFR, crippled the local economy.

Railway minister Nitish Kumar had promised to upgrade and re-open Oodlabari halt immediately after gauge-conversion work taken up by the NFR in the Siliguri-Alipurduar route was completed.

Passenger trains began running between Siliguri junction and Alipurduar from November 20, some days after the conversion was completed.

Nothing, however, changed for Oodlabari Unnayan Committee, a local body lobbying for the cause for the past six years. The committee has decided to garner support and go on hunger strike in front of the railway administrative office.

The committee, which enjoys the support of Oodlabari residents, the sitting MP from Jalpaiguri and even the support of the Railway Standing Committee, has decided to continue the stir till their demand of up-grade is fulfilled.

“Despite the railway minister’s assurance and repeated requests to the authorities concerned, our pleas have gone unheeded. Nothing has been done though we have highlighted the commercial viability of the upgrade. A rail roko and an indefinite hunger strike might open the eyes of the authorities to our plight, ” said Asok Mukherjee, joint convener of Oodlabari Unnayan Committee.

“Oodlabari was a major centre for maintenance and repair of the tea-processing machinery before the station was robbed off its status. A major chunk of the tea produced in Jalpaiguri used to be transported from this station. The decision taken by the railway authority six years ago has made the region lose crores,” said Tapan Ghosh, secretary of the committee.

Oodlabari was a scheduled stop for the Intercity Express and two other passenger trains. One from Changrabandha to Siliguri and the other from Banarhat to Siliguri. “People have to pay Rs 20 as bus fare to travel to Siliguri and seasonal mudslides make the journey difficult,” Ghosh said.

Jalpaiguri MP Minati Sen said: “I have raised the issue in Parliament a number of times. The railway minister said he would look into the matter after the completion of the conversion work. Now that the conversion is complete, I will write to him.”

Brushing aside NFR’s apprehension that an upgraded station in Oodlabari would fail to generate sufficient revenue, Ghosh said: “We not only want the trains to stop here but also a crossing facility that would enable both up and down trains to operate at the same time. The two passenger trains currently plying through Oodlabari fetch over Rs 800 from daily tickets sales. The amount is next to Alipurduar in terms of generating income on this route. If more short and long distance trains stop at Oodlabari, it will definitely result in higher earnings for NFR.”