Dense fog delays arrival, departure of many trains from Amritsar railway station

Neeraj Bagga

Amritsar, January 16

Passengers were inconvenienced as several trains including Shatabdi, Shan-e-Punjab and Chhattisgarh Express, ran behind their scheduled time due to inclement weather conditions in the region.

Passengers, their relatives and friends waited for the arrival and departure of their trains on platforms and in waiting halls that were full to capacity. Some keenly watched the time table of trains displayed on the LED screens installed at the railway station. Arrival and departure timings of many trains kept changing much to the disappointment of passengers.

Vinod Kumar Gupta of Indore said after visiting Jammu and Kashmir, he came to the holy city to pay obeisance at the Golden Temple. He and four members of his family were scheduled to board Chhattisgarh Express at the Amritsar railway station for their next destination Agra. Today, when he and his family arrived at the railway station on time they were shocked to learn that the departure of their train was delayed by about two-and-a-half hour. Since they did not have any alternative so, they decided to wait for the train in the waiting hall.

Gupta said their itinerary would change drastically as they had to catch another train from Agra to return to their native city Indore.

A tourist Robin Kumar said after paying obeisance at the Golden Temple, he was to catch a train for his next destination Ferozepur. The train was to depart at

5 pm, which was rescheduled at 8 pm and again at 10 pm. “My family and some friends are accompanying me. Out of our hometown, we did not know where to spend time during the cold evening and night.”

Railway officials were unaware of the arrival of many trains as their schedule kept changing. Delhi-Amritsar Shatabdi, arrives at 1:30 pm and departs at 4:50 pm. It did not arrive at the station till late evening and its departure was rescheduled at 10 pm.

Shan-e-Punjab, which arrives at 2:15 pm and departs at 3:10 pm, did not arrive till 4 pm. Amritsar-Nanded Sachkhand Express, which departs from the local railway station at 5:30 am, left the station at 12:30 pm. Amritsar Howrah Express, which departs at 4:50 pm, was rescheduled to chug out at

8 pm. The departure of Amritsar New Delhi Express was rescheduled from 4:15 pm to 9:45 pm. Amritsar-Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus train, which departs at 8:50 pm, was rescheduled at 12:45 pm. The departure of Amritsar-Bilaspur Chhattisgarh Express was rescheduled from 4:10 pm to 7:40 pm.