Over 300 commuters protest at Virar station demanding more local trains

Protestors staged a rail roko at Nalasopara station in July. Pic/Atul Kamble

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly 300 angry commuters, mostly office-goers, staged a protest at Mumbai's Virar station on Monday demanding more local trains for the commute. The protestors staged a demonstration after the buses could not reach the bus stands due to heavy traffic.

The Railway Protection Force, Government Railway Police and local police had to pacify the crowd as the unplanned protest created a traffic snarl near the Virar railway station during peak hours in the morning.

Speaking to Hindustan Times, Prasenjeet Ingle, a commuter said that it takes around four hours for him to reach office due to heavy traffic on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway. The commuters could not reach the station as the buses could not reach in time at the Virar bus depot. This led to the protestors marching to the railway station demanding more trains.

In July, angry commuters in Nalasopara had staged a similar protest demanding that they should be allowed to travel by local trains as only essential services workers were allowed to travel on them. The commuters had also broken barricades and stood on the tracks while staging the protest.

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