Migrant Workers, Students to be Charged Ticket Fair in Special Trains
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The Indian Railways has said
it will charge for tickets on the special trains being run to ferry the students and migrant workers home. The
fare includes price of regular sleeper class tickets plus superfast charges of
Rs 30 and an additional charge of Rs 20. This will include meals and drinking
water for long distance trains.
However, the state governments can pay on
passenger’s behalf, said the railways ministry.
“Passengers need not to buy anything from the railways. State
governments will coordinate and pay on their behalf”, the railways said.
Thousands of migrants were stranded in
places across the country since the lockdown was enforced on March 25,
many even attempted to walk
home hundreds of kilometers
away.
The railways also clarified that these
are special trains planned for nominated people identified and registered by
state governments.
“No one under any circumstance should
come to Railway station looking for trains. We will not issue any tickets to
any individual or entertain any request from any group or individual. We will
allow only those passengers to board whom state government officials will bring
to railway stations.
“State government is the final authority
to decide that
who will travel in our trains”, a Railways
spokesperson said.
Earlier today, the home ministry, after
persistent requests from the states, allowed the railways to run special trains
to bring home students and migrant workers stuck across the country due to the
nationwide lock-down in place.
These special trains will be run from
point to point on the request of both the concerned State governments for
sending and receiving such stranded persons.
The first such service was run with 1,200
passengers from Hyderabad to Jharkhand at 4:50 am on Friday.
The passengers will be screened by the
sending states and only those found asymptomatic would be allowed to travel.
It will be mandatory for every passenger
to wear masks. Meals and drinking water would be provided to the passengers by
the sending states at the originating station.
