On Thursday, the ‘Migrant Special’ train which started from Vasai station near Mumbai to reach Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh, detoured to reach Rourkela in Odisha.
Representational Image (Photo by SAM PANTHAKY / AFP)
As the migrant crisis which has hit the country amid the Coronavirus lockdown seems to not resolve anytime soon as respite for them seems to be not planned out well. In one such incident, hundreds of workers from Maharashtra took a train to reach their home towns in Uttar Pradesh, instead they reached Odisha the next day when they woke up in the morning.
On Thursday, the ‘Migrant Special’ train which started from Vasai station near Mumbai to reach Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh, detoured to reach Rourkela in Odisha.
The migrants who were eager to get down and go to their homes were left in the lurch. They were angry and asked the railway officials about what happened, they told the migrants that the train’s loco pilot had lost his way, due to some confusion, reported News18.
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But the Railways has denied that the detour was due to some confusion rather claimed that the change of destination was well planned out.
“We have decided to run a few of the Shramik trains on diverted routes. Some trains were diverted for Bihar via Rourkela to clear congestion,” News 18 quoted the officials as saying.
But neither the passengers were informed in advance about this plan of the Railways nor are they updated about the next schedule of the train, as when is it going to restart the journey to reach Gorakpur.
As for now the poor migrant labourers in their attempt to reach the familiar confines of their homes, are now marooned in an unknown destination, straight out of the frying pan into the fire.
Amid the nationwide lockdown, thousands of daily wagers and other migrants have undertaken epic journeys to reach home — walking, cycling and hitching rides when they could — in the absence of any public transport and many of them had lost their lives in tragic accidents. Now that the trains and buses have been started by government for them, hopefully they will soon reach their homes safe and sound.
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