Indian Railways Suspends Regular Train Services Indefinitely

The Ministry of Railways has announced that all passenger and suburban trains that were to be suspended till August 12 will remain suspended &ldquotill further notice.&rdquo However, they have clarified that the 230 Special Trains which are in operation currently will remain functional. They are monitoring the occupancy of the Special Trains on a regular basis. If required additional Special Trains may be run on certain routes.

The special suburban train services in Mumbai which have been operating for the transportation of essential service personnel will also continue to run. 

The Railways has also informed that all other suburban and regular trains which had been operational before the lockdown will continue to remain suspended for the time being. These have remained non-functional since March 25 when the pandemic forced the Indian government to enforce nationwide lockdown protocols.

The Indian Railways is looking at a huge loss of Rs40,000 crores with this indefinite suspension plans of passenger trains. 

The 230 Special Trains have been operational since June 1 with 30 special AC trains and 200 more passenger trains taking all precautionary measures against the pandemic. Wearing of face masks, reaching the station 90 minutes in advance for thermal screening and carrying own linen are some of the rules which have been followed in these trains. You can find out more information here.

The launching of a contactless ticket checking app by the Central Railways a few weeks back is another preventive measure against COVID-19. Find out more about this here.