ECR runs relief camp at Raxaul station

Patna: Concerned at the devastation caused by recent earthquake that killed hundreds of people in Nepal and left many others stranded there, East Central Railway (ECR) has set up a 24X7 relief camp at Raxaul station. A five-member team of railway officials, headed by Samastipur DRM Sudhanshu Sharma, is camping there to supervise relief operations under the direct supervision of ECR GM A K Mittal.
According to ECR CPRO Arvind Kumar Rajak, railways will run a special train (05531) with the load combination of 18 coaches between Raxaul and Howrah till May 1, 2015, leaving Raxaul at 11pm. However, railways could extend the run of this special train depending on the situation. A large number of people stranded in Nepal due to tremors are from Bihar and West Bengal. Thus, this special train, which is running via Sitamarhi-Darbhanga-Samastipur-Barauni-Jhajha-Durgapur-Asansol-Burdawan, is coping with the rush of evacuated people, he said.
Rajak said about 8,000 people, including men, women and children, had so far been carried from Raxaul to their respective destinations by special trains or by attaching extra coaches to long-distance trains. The tremor victims are being issued zero-value tickets to travel free of cost to their native places in and outside Bihar, he said.
According to senior divisional commercial manager (senior DCM), Samastipur, Zafar Azam, railways has also arranged eatables and mineral water for these people at different stations under Samastipur division. Besides, railways has made special arrangements to unload relief materials being brought from different places of the country in the brake vans or by goods wagons at Raxaul station, he said, adding unloaded relief materials are being dispatched immediately to Nepal.
Rajak said railways has also decided to continue attaching extra coaches to Raxaul-Howrah Mithila Express (13022) and Raxaul-Delhi Satyagraha Express (15273) to facilitate earthquake victims reach their destinations safely.