Trains to and fro Kerala capital arrive at Madgao in Goa

Over 300 passengers on Saturday arrived at Madgao railway station in Goa in two trains to and fro Thiruvananthapuram, a senior official said.

It can be recalled that Chief Minister Pramod Sawant had suggested the Railways to cancel the halt at Madgaon for special trains as the coastal state recorded fresh COVID-19 cases after a gap of more than a month.

Sawant on Thursday said the state government had suggested to the Railways that a special train from New Delhi to Thiruvananthapuram should not halt at Madgao station on May 16.

Earlier on Saturday, a batch of 35 passengers arrived at Madgao station in Thiruvananthapuram- New Delhitrain around noon, said South Goa Collector Ajit Roy.

"This was the first regular train that ran in Goa during the lockdown period, except the Shramik Special trains," he said.

Another train from Delhi to Thiruvananthapuram arrived at 2.30 pm bringing in 288 passengers, Roy said.

He said the passengers who alighted at the railway station were taken to South Goa district hospital in special buses where they were tested for coronavirus.

Meanwhile, state health Minister Vishwajit Rane tweeted that all the passengers who alighted from the Thiruvananthapuram-New Delhi train have tested negative for the coronavirus.

"Results of 35 people who came from Thiruvananthapuram via railway reported Negative. Another lot of 100 out of 288 have arrived from Delhi via rail. Their swabs are taken and testing is underway.They will be sent to Fatorda stadium for quarantine until the results are out (sic)," Rane tweeted.

Sawant had said that people travelling to the state in special trains or flights will have to undergo home quarantine for 14 days even if they are non-Goans.