@EW Correspondent

New Delhi, Northern Railway is spreading the festive joy by operating special trains during the ongoing festival season. Shobhan Chaudhuri, General Manager of Northern Railway, personally inspected the festival rush arrangements at New Delhi Railway Station, ensuring a seamless experience for passengers. Accompanied by Shri Sukhwinder Singh, DRM Delhi Division, and other senior officers, GM Chaudhuri interacted with passengers and assessed the arrangements.

A total of 880 trips of 109 pairs of special trains have been notified, with 809 trips heading eastbound and the remaining 71 trips going north or to other destinations. These trips have generated approximately 17.5 lac additional seats, accommodating passengers of all classes. To facilitate this, Northern Railway has augmented 70 trains (68 rakes) with 117 coaches, resulting in more than 5.17 lac berths. In total, there are about 22.5 lac additional berths/seats for passengers.

 Mini Control Room

A well-equipped mini control room operates 24x7 at New Delhi, manned by nominated staff from various departments.

Facilities include telephones, train information, panel room connectivity, and CCTV feeds of platforms and circulating areas.

Special Duty Officers (SDOs) are deputed at New Delhi station during peak rush periods for overall supervision and coordination.

Additional Passenger Facilities

Tentage arrangement at Ajmeri Gate circulating area.

20 mobile toilets, 20 additional water taps, 7 reservation counters, 1 large LCD screen for train information, and public address system.

2 small LCD screens for news and cultural songs, along with 2 food and snacks stalls.

RPF help desk counter.

Medical Facilities

Deployment of a doctor from 06:00 hrs to 24:00 hrs.

First aid post with para-medical staff, adequate stretchers, and wheelchairs at stations.

Availability of an ambulance.

Deployment of Additional Staff

Additional commercial staff, RPF & RPSF, GRP staff, civil defense volunteers, and Scout & Guides are deputed for crowd control and passenger assistance.

Other Precautions

Eastbound trains to be prioritized for departure from Platform 16.

Once decided, platform berthing will not be changed.

All rakes, including special trains, to be placed on platforms at least 30 minutes before scheduled departure.

Proper working Train Enquiry and announcement systems.

Operational escalators.

Medical facilities at various hospitals near railway stations on standby.

Passenger Statistics

From April to October 2023, 95.3% of total passengers were in Non-AC coaches (General and Sleeper Class). 4.7% of passengers traveled in AC coaches. A notable increase of 38 Cr. extra passengers in Non-AC coaches compared to the previous year. Total passengers increased by 41.1 Cr., with a 92.5% increase in Non-AC passengers.