Shramik Special reaches Ballia late by 26 hrs

A Shramik Special train from Karmali in Goa arrived here on Sunday after a delay of over 26 hours, said officials. Some passengers of the train said the trains reached its destination taking several detours, leaving them hungry, thirsty and tired.

Public Relation Officer Ashok Kumar for the office of Varanasi-based divisional railway manager, said, "Train number 1652 was to reach here at 11 am on Saturday, but it reached on Sunday at 1.28 pm. Owing to congestion in rail traffic, the Shramik Special train arrived quite late in Ballia," he said. Sub-divisional magistrate Sarvesh Kumar Yadav said, "As many as 1,129 passengers came on this train, with most of them hailing from Ballia, Azamgarh and Mau."

Some of the passengers said that because of the route diversion, they had to face hardships, and could not even get water.

"The train started from Goa on Thursday at its scheduled time. At the time of departure, we got food and water. Instead of going to Itarsi from Bhusawal, the train went towards Nagpur. The train moved in Maharashtra on different routes. Later, the train reached Itrasi," Mau district residents Sanjay Chauhan and Awadh Kumar told reporters.