Adding to the travel woes of the rail passengers during the busy Onam season, the Ernakulam – Bengaluru Vande Bharat rake is resting at the Ernakulam South railway station. Meanwhile, Keralites in Bengaluru are spending hefty sums to book tickets on buses to reach home for Onam. Rail passengers, people’s representatives and various passengers’ associations have been urging the railways to resume the Ernakulam – Bengaluru Vande Bharat special. However, their appeals seem to be falling on deaf ears as the authorities continue their apathy.
The Vande Bharat rake with eight coaches had run until August 26. Even though the officials in Ernakulam had begun preparations for resuming the service, a final decision by the higher authorities wasn’t made. Meanwhile, the ticket fares on the buses in the Bengaluru – Ernakulam route have skyrocketed; it is likely to further go up in the coming days too.
Demanding to resume the Vande Bharat special service immediately, Hibi Eden MP recently sought enquiry as to why the profitable service was stopped abruptly. In his letter to the railway minister, the MP asked why the authorities were waiting until the last moment to start the service if they had already decided to extend it. Besides, he also demanded to allow special trains to Ernakulam from all the major cities in India.
The travel prospects of hundreds of passengers were affected when the railways refused to continue the special service to Kerala, a few weeks before Onam, when Keralites returned home. The trips were mostly full despite the passengers pointing out the impractical schedule. This special service had become so popular among the passengers on the Ernakulam – Bengaluru route that the tickets would be sold out quickly.
With Onam just two weeks away, most of the tickets booked on trains to the southern districts are on the waiting list. Meanwhile, the passengers have been urging the railways to announce special trains as soon as possible, instead of waiting until the last moment. National Kerala Congress state chairman and NDA vice chairman Kuruvila Mathews demanded to make the Ernakulam – Bengaluru Vande Bharat special service permanent and to increase the number of coaches to 16.
