COVID-19: Train services likely to remain suspended even after April 14

A meeting which was headed by Rajnath Singh along with Amit Shah and Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday discussed the strategy on how lockdown should be lifted in the country. As per the sources, suggestions over the lifting of lockdown in phases were also being given in the meeting. However, no final decision has been taken yet.

New Delhi: As the 21-day nationwide lockdown, due to Coronavirus pandemic, has almost reached to its end, it is being expected that the train services will remain suspended even after April 14.

The move was discussed at the meeting of Group of Ministers (GoM), held recently, over COVID-19. The meeting was headed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, where Union Ministers Amit Shah and Nirmala Sitharaman were also present.

The meeting also discussed the exit strategy on how lockdown should be uplifted in the country. As per the sources, suggestions over the upliftment of lockdown in phases were also being given in the meeting. However, no final decision has been taken yet.

After various media reports were started coming up over the restoration of train services after April 14, Ministry of Railways, on Thursday, informed in an official statement that no protocol has been issued yet.

The statement said, "It may be brought into the notice of all concerned that Railway Ministry has not issued any protocol as yet as falsely mentioned in the report.

It is premature to speculate about the norms of railway travel by passengers at this stage. Railways would do best feasible decisions and in the interest of all stakeholders including the prospective passengers."

The reports came in the wake of a tweet done by DRM Chennai while replying to a query on Twitter, in which he said that train will start from 15/04/2020. However, the tweet was deleted later on and it was clarified that the previous tweet was "inadvertently posted" and all the zones are awaiting for Government's instructions on the resumption of passenger trains.

Train services likely to remain suspended even after April 14

Earlier today, the Cabinet of Odisha state government also announced the extension of lockdown till April 30. Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik requested the Union Government not to restore train and air services even during this period.

In the wake of COVID-19 pandemic, even if the Government uplifts certain restrictions, interstate travel will not be allowed post-April 14, informed the sources.