Published 13:10 IST, March 18th 2020
Mumbai local trains to be shut amidst Coronavirus outbreak? Officials clarify
Mumbai local trains will run as usual. However the Maharashtrian govt has appealed citizens not to travel unnecessarily in locals. Read ahead for details.
- Republic Business
- 3 min read
Will the lifeline of Mumbai, the Mumbai local trains be closed? Amidst the Coronavirus outbreak, such speculations were doing the rounds since the past few days. Earlier, several passenger trains starting from Maharashtra were cancelled. But whether Mumbai Local trains are closed or not remains the question of the hour. Check the latest updates about it below.
Mumbai local trains stay unaffected
As per the latest reports, the Maharashtrian government has not shut down Mumbai local train services. However, Maharashtra's Chief Minister UddhavThackeray said if things get out of hand, local train and bus services might go into a lockdown mode. He has urged people not to travel in Mumbai local trains until it's very crucial. Take a look at the tweet by official CMO handle.
With millions of lives at stake, the Maharashtrian government warned citizens about the possibility of a harsh decision of the trains to be shut, in the wake of the Coronavirus. However, they assured that all the Mumbai local trains are being sanitised properly. One can read several banners at stations and in trains, about various precautionary measures one should take as well.
Furthermore in Mumbai News, the Central Railway has wrapped a complete 12 car EMU local. This is done in order to create awareness and spread it as much as possible amidst the citizens of Mumbai.
The step of preventing the Mumbai Local suspension has been done because a large number of people commute via Mumbai local trains on an everyday basis. In fact, most individuals earn their daily wages by travelling from this public transport. Mr Udhav Thackeray also talked about the number of Coronavirus positive cases in Maharashtra. As per the data, 40 confirmed cases have been registered in the state out of which one senior citizen died on March 17. Hence, he urged people to stay indoors until the situation is under control.
These passenger trains cancelled
With Mumbai Local trains unaffected, some other passenger trains have been cancelled. This step has been taken due to the low occupancy of 10 trains. You can check the names and train routes here. Take a look.
Updated 13:10 IST, March 18th 2020