Mumbai: Relief for stranded passengers, Konkan Railway route cleared for operation after 24 hrs

Konkan Railway services halted due to landslide. Pic/Rajendra Aklekar

Train traffic on the Konkan Railway route resumed at 7 PM on Monday, more than 24 hours after soil seepage outside a tunnel in Maharashtra disrupted services and left many passengers stranded in trains for hours, officials said, reported PTI.

Konkan Railway officials expect train services to normalise soon.

Notably, this is the second major disruption in the last six days on the Konkan Railway route which passes through mountainous terrains from Roha in Maharashtra to Thokur in Kerala. Earlier, traffic on the route was halted for 18 hours due to waterlogging at the Pernem tunnel near Goa on July 10.

The area where the seepage occurred between Vinhere and Diwan Khavati railway stations in Raigad and Ratnagiri districts of Maharashtra on Sunday evening, had reportedly received over 300 mm of rainfall in the last 24 hours.

According to the PTI report, Konkan Railway spokesperson confirmed that the CSMT-bound Mandovi Express was the first train to pass through the affected area around 7 pm after the track was declared fit for operation earlier in the evening.

Passengers faced considerable difficulties since the soil seepage incident occurred outside the Natuwadi tunnel on Sunday around 5 pm.

The disruption reportedly led to several train cancellations, diversions via the Pune-Londa route, short terminations, and rescheduling. Many passengers were stranded in trains for hours, prompting Konkan Railway to arrange state transport (ST) buses for their relief.

More than 25 trains were cancelled, 19 diverted, 7 partially cancelled/short terminated, and 8 trains were rescheduled, the Konkan Railway said on Monday evening in a statement.

An official said the restoration of tracks took longer than expected due to heavy rains and mud coming onto the tracks.

Some trains were short-terminated at Ratnagiri, and buses from the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation were roped in to take stranded passengers to their destinations, the official said in a video message.

A passenger heading to Udupi from Mumbai said he has been travelling onboard the Matsyagandha Express diverted via the Pune-Londha route due to the soil seepage for the last 26 hours, reported PTI.

"I have been onboard the train for the last 26 hours and it will take another 7-8 hours to reach the destination," he said.

(With inputs from PTI)