Bandra stampede: Railways imposes platform ticket sale restrictions at major stations to control crowding

File pic

The Central Railway (CR) announced on Sunday, October 27, that it has imposed a temporary restriction on the sale of platform tickets at major stations to mitigate crowding during the festival season. This decision comes hours after 10 people were injured at Western Railway's (WR) Bandra Terminus in Mumbai while attempting to board a train to Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh, news agency PTI stated.

The Bandra stampede incident occurred at 2.45 am when passengers tried to enter the unreserved Gorakhpur Antyodaya Express as it was arriving on platform number 1 from the yard ahead of its scheduled departure at 5.10 am. Videos of the chaotic scene at Bandra Terminus went viral on social media.

In a press release issued later that day, CR stated that the platform ticket sale restrictions will be enforced at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT), Dadar, Kurla Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (LTT), Thane, Kalyan, Pune, and Nagpur stations with immediate effect. Meanwhile, WR announced that platform ticket sales will be restricted until November 8 at Mumbai Central, Dadar, Bandra Terminus, Borivali, Vasai Road, Vapi, Valsad, Udhna, and Surat stations.

"The restrictions imposed aim to manage anticipated crowding during the upcoming Diwali and Chhath Puja festive season and will remain in place until November 8. This step is intended to facilitate smooth passenger movement within station premises," stated an official.

The official also noted that senior citizens and those with medical needs are exempt from these restrictions, urging all passengers to adhere to the new regulations for a safe and pleasant travel experience during the festive period.

In another announcement, CR indicated that it would operate two additional unreserved trains between CSMT and Gorakhpur to accommodate the increased passenger rush during Diwali and Chhath. This will bring the total number of services planned or operated for these two festivals to 583, reported PTI.

The details of the trains are as follows:

The 01019 unreserved special train will depart from CSMT Mumbai at 2.30 PM on Monday, October 28, and is scheduled to arrive in Gorakhpur at 11 pm the following day. The 01020 unreserved special will leave Gorakhpur at 12.45 AM on October 30, and arrive at CSMT at 10.35 am the next day. Both the trains will halt at Dadar, Thane, Kalyan, Igatpuri, Nashik Road, Bhusaval, Khandwa, Itarsi, Bhopal, Bina, Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi, Orai, Kanpur Central, Lucknow, Barabanki, Gonda, and Basti stations, reported PTI.

(With PTI inputs)