Passengers on the prestigious Mumbai-Delhi Rajdhani Express are spending over 30 hours in transit due to delays following the Gurjar protests in Rajasthan over the past two weeks and fog-related delays.
“I had read about diversions, but did not expect such a delay. Had I known earlier, I would have taken a flight. I have been taking the train for many years and they always run on time. But this time, the train was passing unexpected stations and was detained,” said Parikshit Shah, a businessman who visited Delhi.
“We were supposed to reach Delhi in the morning, but it’s now 8pm and we’re nearing Delhi. We are told we will reach Delhi by 10pm. It has been delayed since its start from Mumbai. The train started at 5.40pm from Mumbai Central yesterday, and has been halting almost every 10 to 15 minutes, even after diversions,” said 23-year-old Blessy Augustine, who spoke to DNA from the stranded train.
“They are providing us breakfast food at regular intervals. They did give us lunch in the morning, but we do not know if they will provide us dinner,” she said, adding, “My coach has almost emptied out, though other coaches are still crowded.”
Another passenger, Ankit Mazumdar, remarked, “The train journey has become too long and I have advised all my friends to refrain from booking tickets for the train until protests stop. Fog delays are common, but the protests have led to major changes in the route too.”
The Rajdhani usually has just five halts, including the two destination points, and halts only at Mumbai Central, Surat, Vadodara junction, Ratlam junction and New Delhi.
A senior official said that the Mumbai-Delhi Rajdhani Express usually takes about 16 hours for the 1,384km journey. However, due to protests on tracks, the main trunk route has been blocked and trains are being diverted, leading to delays of about six to seven hours per journey. There are further delays due to climatic conditions like fog and chilly weather.
“The train is taking a detour of almost 400 km due to the protests and a normal 16-hour journey is now taking over 24 hours due to these reasons. There are further delays due to fog,” he added.
