In a remarkable development, the Indian Railway operated 145 Shramik special trains from across India on Thursday. An official from the Ministry of Railways has revealed that in this mission to send the migrants back to their native places, the Indian Railways has helped close to 2.10 lakh migrant labourers to return back their homes on Thursday.
An official statement from the Ministry of Railways informed, “Yesterday, 145 Shramik trains were operated and nearly 2.10 lakh passengers were ferried home. As of 9 AM today, 999 Shramik Specials have been approved.”
The Ministry further added, “As on 14th May 2020, a total of 800 “Shramik Special” trains have been operationalized from various states across the country. More than 10 lakh passengers have reached their home state.”
Till now 800 trains have been terminated in various states like Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Mizoram, Odisha, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal.
The state and Union territories/district administrations have been operational in conducting certain activities to ensure strict observance of lockdown orders. The passengers are being screened properly before boarding the train and the passengers are also given free meals and water.
Indian railways operated the Shramik Special trains after MHA orders
The Indian Railways decided to operate ‘Shramik special trains’ for migrant labourers following the orders of Ministry of Home Affairs regarding the movement of migrant workers, pilgrims, tourists, students and other persons stranded at different places via special trains after the reports of migrants scuffling to go back to their natives emerged.
These special trains have reportedly ferried migrants to cities like Tiruchchirappalli, Titlagarh, Barauni, Khandwa, Jagannathpur, Khurda Road, Prayagraj, Chhapra, Balia, Gaya, Purnia, Varanasi, Darbhanga, Gorakhpur, Lucknow, Jaunpur, Hatia, Basti, Katihar, Danapur, Muzaffarpur, Saharsa, etc.