Train services stay suspended

Railway authorities are not refunding full price of tickets but deducting 20%

KARACHI:

Train operations from Karachi are not restored even after 10 days as most of the railway tracks in Sindh are flooded due to rains and floods.

The railway authorities are refunding the ticket money with a 20% deduction. Karachi Cantt Station, which often remains crowded with thousands of passengers, is now deserted and quiet. Due to the flood situation across the province, on August 26, the track between Nawabshah and Bocheri Station, 301 kilometres away from Karachi, was flooded. The railway authorities have started the repair work, which has not been completed yet.

Meanwhile, the domestic train traffic from Karachi has been completely suspended for the past ten days. Due to the suspension of train operations, porters are also suffering from financial problems.

The passengers complain that the railway authorities are not refunding the full price of the ticket but deducting 20%. Railway authorities are cutting money instead of fixing the system, which is causing travelers more problems. "We want to travel, but it is not possible due to the indifference and laziness of the railway authorities," said the passengers.

In view of more rain, the railway authorities should try to complete the repair work and provide relief to the public. Railway officials said the operations will be restored again in a few days. The repair work is delayed due to continuous rains and floods, officials said.

The income of porters, who carry the luggage of passengers, has been stopped. For the past ten days, the porters at Railway Stations have been worried about their household expenses. They complained that the government and the railway authorities are not doing justice to them.

There was a continuous disruption in the movement of trains for the last two months. They said that the railway authorities and government only make excuses, whereas the purpose of these excuses is only to escape from their responsibilities.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, September 5^th, 2022.