Yesterday, in an attempt to provide relaxation amid the coronavirus lockdown, the Indian Railways announced partially resuming passenger train services. While the operations will start from May 12, the bookings for the same will open from May 11th at 4 pm. These special trains will operate in a pair of 15 routes from New Delhi to other major Indian cities including Howrah, Dibrugarh, Jammu, Ranchi, Bhubaneswar, Secunderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Patna, Mumbai and Agartala.
The Indian Railways also added that passengers will be able to book tickets online on the official IRCTC website only as all ticket booking counters at stations will remain closed to maintain minimum interaction.
As the coronavirus fear is still not settled, the Indian Railways has listed down some important guidelines for all travellers. Here’s all that you need to know:
- Ticket bookings are only open at the IRCTC website as all station counters will remain closed
- It’s mandatory for all passengers to cover their face and undergo screening before departure
- Passengers will have to arrive at their respective railway station at least an hour ago for screening and other formalities.
- Compulsory download of Aarogya Setu mobile app
- Passengers showing COVID-19 symptoms will not be allowed to board the train
- There will be no provision of ‘Tatkal’ and ‘Premium Tatkal’ bookings
- All tickets will have the complete list of ‘Dos and Don’ts’ that travellers need to follow
- Only passengers with confirmed tickets will be allowed to enter the railway station
- Blankets and linen will not be provided and no pre-paid meals will be available
- Passengers will not able to book tickets at ticket counters in railway stations
- These trains will have only AC coaches with limited stoppage
All passenger trains were suspended due to the country-wide lockdown announced on March 25, however, the Indian Railways later started Shramik Special trains for migrant workers stranded across the country.
