Bengaluru: Hundreds of passengers from Bengaluru were stranded near Subramanya for hours as they arrived in the city on Saturday on the Karwar-Yesvantpur train. Their harrowing experience began near Nettana station inside the dense western ghat forests near the famous temple town of Shri Kukke Subramanya, after a landslide on the Shiradi ghat which was triggered by torrential rain.
The train in which they were traveling was cancelled as the railway was not able to clear the track on time. Later in the evening all the passengers were sent to Bengaluru city in six KSRTC buses. According to sources, two trains were cancelled following the landslide.
As per passengers who were traveling in the train, which started from Karwar city in North Canara district early on Saturday morning, the train stopped near Nettana station in the afternoon after receiving alerts from officials that the track was damaged due to a landslide on Shiradi ghat. All the passengers were later shifted to Subramanya and they were forced to wait till 5 pm for alternative arrangements. Later the passengers were sent to Bengaluru city in six KSRTC buses.
According to the passengers, the train was packed and it was very uncomfortable as they were stranded in a deep forest area and were shifted to Subramanya amidst a heavy downpour. “It was a horrible experience. I never had such a terrible experience,” said Ms. Gomathi Bhat, a software professional who was traveling in the train. “There was a heavy downpour. I was traveling with my two-month-old child. I opted for the train instead of the bus, thinking my kid may not feel comfortable in the bus. Finally officials just arranged old buses to transport us. I reached the city around 11 pm and was forced to stay in a city lodge,” she said.
According to the South Western railway officials, the track damage was noticed by a goods train pilot. “He immediately alerted us and so we cancelled the passenger train arriving from Mangalore. A team of experts rushed to the spot and the track was cleared by midnight,” informed an officer. When contacted, Mr. U. Krishnamurthy, Senior Deputy General manager, confirmed that there had indeed been a landslide and added that the track was cleared in a few hours.
“Only one passenger train was cancelled. The Mangala Express train, which was scheduled to run at night, proceeded without delay,” he said.
