Protest holds up 18 express trains for three hours

Chennai: As many as 18 express trains bound to and from Chennai Egmore station were delayed by three ho­urs after passengers abo­ard the Puducherry exp­re­ss staged a rail roko at Othivakkam, off Chen­g­a­lpet, late on Friday.

This is the second consecutive rail blockade sta­g­ed by passengers of the Puducherry express who are up in arms against the railways for regulating th­e­ir train up to an hour daily at remote Othiv­ak­k­a­­m to make way for the Egmore bound Guru­va­y­ur express.

The passenge­rs squatted on the track ar­o­und 8 pm and refused to move till half past 11 pm. Normalcy in train mo­­­v­­ement was restored on the route only around 1.30 am. The pro­t­e­s­ting pa­ss­engers argued that they start at 6 am every day to reach the Union territory from here and do not return home till 10.30 pm, owing to the daily regulation of the Puducherry express.

However, railway officials argued that Guruv­a­y­ur express ought to be given priority as it serves as a major connecting train for north bound passengers from parts of southern Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

“Only if Guruvayur exp­re­ss is accorded priority and allowed to move ah­e­ad of the Puducherry ex­p­r­e­ss at Othivakkam will p­a­s­sengers who plan to board the Tamil Nadu, Ho­wrah and Cheran exp­re­sses, among others, be able to travel as planned,” the officials reason.

An immediate solution seems unlikely as the railways has released Rs 90 crore less than the budgetary allocation this year for Chengalpet-Villup­ur­am doubling. Southern railway is under compulsion to somehow prevent the regulation of the Puducherry express.