North Eastern Railway notifies 145 special puja trains for Chhath festival

Considering the additional movement of passengers during the festivities, North Eastern Railway has notified 145 special puja trains which will run continuously till all the passengers return after the Chhath festival.

Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) for North Eastern Railway, Pankaj Kumar Singh, said that special trains are being run in record numbers.

Speaking to ANI, Pankaj Kumar Singh said, "Keeping in mind the Diwali and Chhath festivals, special arrangements have been made for the passengers; special trains are being run in record numbers. 145 special puja trains have been notified out of which 95 are commencing from North Eastern Railway. In the last 24 hours nearly 2 lakh passengers came here during Diwali."

He further said that the railway is continuously making efforts for the safe commutation of the passengers.

"These trains will run continuously after Chhath till all the passengers return. Crowd management plans have been implemented in the main railway stations, where passenger holding areas have been set up. Passenger holding areas have been provided all facilities like additional lightning, train display board, public address system, RO facility. Additional deployment of security forces has also been done," he added.

Earlier, North Western Railway put in special arrangements for Diwali and Chhath Puja, with 44 pairs of special trains running to and from high-demand stations like Mumbai, Pune, Howrah, and nearby regions in Bihar.

Captain Shashi Kiran, Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of North Western Railway, told ANI that extra coaches, volunteers, and Railway Protection Force (RPF) staff have been deployed at stations to manage passenger rush and ensure smooth travel.

"For Diwali and Chhath festivals, North Western Railways organised special arrangements. Currently, 44 pairs of special trains are operating from stations with high demand, such as Mumbai, Pune, Howrah, and nearby regions in Bihar... We are assessing the need for more special trains. With approval, we can operate additional trains. Additionally, we have added 174 coaches to nearly 60 regular trains, which are currently running... We are arranging holding areas in major stations, such as Jaipur, to reduce platform crowding," he said.

The Indian Railways has decided to take strict action against social media handles sharing 'misleading' videos related to railway operations.

During this festive season, some social media handles have been circulating old or misleading videos, creating confusion among passengers, said the railways in a statement.

The railway administration stated that over 20 such social media handles have been identified, and the process of filing FIRs has been initiated. A 24x7 social media monitoring mechanism has been put in place to keep a close watch on such antisocial elements.

The railway has appealed to all social media users to refrain from sharing videos of crowds or other incidents at stations without verifying the facts. Passengers are urged to rely only on official Railway notifications and verified social media handles of the Ministry of Railways, i.e., @RailMinIndia on X, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, for authentic information.