New Delhi: The Railway Ministry on Saturday clarified that the train services will be resumed in Punjab only if tracks and stations will be fully cleared by the agitators, adding that services will re-start for freight and passengers trains too.
While addressing media, Railway Board Chairman Vinod Kumar Yadav said that the State Government is misguiding by saying that all tracks are clear for the movement of freight trains and asserted that Railways will start the operations of all trains only after getting a security clearance.
"The statement of Punjab Government about clearance of tracks for the movement of Goods trains is misguiding. It is not possible for Railways to selectively run certain kind of freight trains. It will also put the lives of railway personnel and agitators in jeopardy," he stated.
Explaining about the ground situation in Punjab, Yadav said, "There is one station where people are sitting on tracks. While there are 22 railway stations where people are sitting at the circulation areas and giving instructions to the station master that they will only allow goods trains to pass by. If passenger trains will start, they will come to the railway tracks."
On September 24, passenger train services were suspended due to farmers agitation against the recently enacted farm laws. But on September 29, the operations of goods trains were also stopped. On the request of Punjab Government, Railways had resumed its freight operations on October 22 to circulate essential commodities. However, due to the widespread agitation, the overall train services were being suspended within the state on October 24.
"We are repeatedly urging the state government that there should be a security clearance before the resumption of train services. The kind of messages we are receiving from the state government that tracks are ready for the resumption of freight services is very misguiding," said the railway official.
READ: Punjab leaders tell minister to resume train services
He further added, "It is operationally unfeasible for Railways to start partial services in the state. We want complete clearance from the state government, then only we will resume our services."
Due to the farmers' agitation, Indian Railways has lost nearly Rs 1,200 crore in freight revenue with more than 2,225 goods trains suspended and 1,350 passenger trains diverted or cancelled.
Yadav also asserted that Railways is keen to resume its services in the state as there is heavy demand for special trains during the festive season but because of the 'threat perception', Railways is not being able to resume its services in the state.
Earlier today, Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal also urged the Punjab Government to ensure full security to the entire Railway system. He tweeted, "Operationally important that all tracks, stations and Railway property are cleared for the safety of passengers, Railway staff and infrastructure. People of Punjab want to travel for festivals, like Chhath Puja, Diwali and Gurpurab."
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Urge Punjab Govt to ensure full safety and security of entire Railways system and allow running of all trains through and to Punjab so that goods and passenger trains can serve the people of Punjab.
— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) November 7, 2020 " class="align-text-top noRightClick twitterSection" data="
">Urge Punjab Govt to ensure full safety and security of entire Railways system and allow running of all trains through and to Punjab so that goods and passenger trains can serve the people of Punjab.
— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) November 7, 2020Urge Punjab Govt to ensure full safety and security of entire Railways system and allow running of all trains through and to Punjab so that goods and passenger trains can serve the people of Punjab.
— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) November 7, 2020
