Coronavirus: India suspended rail services in March.
Strong points
- Only the special trains announced in May and June will run, according to the railways
- Earlier, the railways had increased the number of special passenger trains
- Rail services were interrupted in late March to stem the spread of the virus
New Delhi:
Indian Railways announced Thursday that it would reimburse all tickets reserved for scheduled trains between July 1 and August 12, as cases of coronavirus in the country increased a month after the government began to relax some restrictions imposed in March. Only the special trains announced in May and June will run, the railways said.
Rail services, with the exception of the movement of certain essential cargoes, were cut short in late March due to efforts to contain the virus which froze almost all economic activity, putting crores out of work overnight.
Earlier this month, the railways increased the number of special passenger trains running in the country from 30 to over 200. These include 15 pairs of trains running on Rajdhani roads since 12 May and 100 pairs in service since June 1.
With coronavirus cases continuing to escalate and uncertainty over the resumption of normal services, the authorities have said they will reimburse all tickets reserved for regular trains. Before the lockout, the Railways operated approximately 12,000 trains each day, carrying 2 crores of people.
The limited special suburban services that have recently started in Mumbai to transport essential services personnel identified by local authorities will also continue to operate, officials said.
Under the rules issued by the Ministry of the Interior for travel, all passengers must undergo thermal control and only those who are asymptomatic will be allowed to board the train.
On board the trains, all passengers were asked to maintain social distance and to wear masks throughout the trip. All passengers are also encouraged to use hand sanitizers.
No catering, bed linen, blankets or curtains will be provided inside the train. Passengers are invited to bring their own sheets if they need them. The temperatures inside AC coaches must be properly regulated for this purpose.
India recorded a record 16,922 new cases on Thursday, bringing the total number of cases in the country to nearly 5 lakh with nearly 15,000 deaths.
It is behind only the United States, Brazil and Russia, and five times that of China, which has a population of similar size and where the virus appeared at the end of last year.
(With agency contributions)
