No Shramik special trains to Bengal yet: Railway officials

Hyderabad: Putting rest to speculations, officials have clarified that no Shramik special has train left from Telangana to Bengal until Sunday evening.

As around 17,000 are stranded migrant workers in state from Bengal, as many as 10-12 trains would be required to ferry them home. Considering the fact that they had to adhere to the social distancing guidelines, only 54 people instead of the usual of 72 people can be allowed in a compartment.

“Most labourers are from Malda, Murshidabad, Nadia, East and West Midnapore, North and South 24 Parganas and Bankura districts. They were employed in the construction sector,” sources said.

Not only the workers, several patients, their attendants, students, pilgrims, employees and tourists from West Bengal are waiting to leave for home. “I am stranded in Secunderabad and want to travel to my native place, Kolkata. However, I don’t have my own vehicle or any means of transport. I have applied for e-pass but have not received any notification,” tweeted a techie, tagging the concerned state authorities.

Railway helpline operating in the state have also been flooded with requests regarding trains. “We have received numerous calls from people enquiring about trains to Bankura, Purulia, New Jalpaiguri, Kharagpur, Howrah, Hooghly district and West Bardhawan district,” said an official.