Bhubaneswar: To provide a comfortable journey to devotees and to avoid rush in regular trains to and from Puri, the East Coast Railway (ECoR) has decided to run 43 special trains to Puri for Suna Besha and another 33 during the Adharapana ritual of sibling deities of Srimandir in the pilgrim town. ECoR has arranged special trains from almost all parts of the state to facilitate passengers to visit Puri. Special trains will run towards Puri from Paradip, Angul, Bhadrak, Junagarh Road, Khurda Road, Daspalla, Sompeta, Palasa, Keonjhar, Gunupur, Jagadalpur, Sonepur, Sambalpur for Suna Besha.
Similarly, trains from Paradip, Angul, Bhadrak, Daspalla, Palasa, Keonjhar and Khurda Road will run to Puri on Adharapana festival, an ECoR release said. To clear additional rush of passengers, special trains will also run towards Bhadrak, Paradip, Angul, Palasa, Kendujhargarh, Daspalla, Brahmapur from Puri on Adharapana and Niladri Bije, it added. ECoR had announced 315 Special Trains for Rath Yatra at Puri. During the period from July 5 to 15, the Railways has already provided 239 special trains to and from Puri starting from Gundicha Yatra to Bahuda Yatra. To clear additional rush of passengers, ECoR is running special trains towards Bhadrak, Paradip, Angul, Palasa, Keonjhar, Daspalla, Brahmapur from Puri on the occasion of Adharapana and Niladri Bije.
The Ministry of Railways also provided various facilities for the convenience of devotees and pilgrims at Puri. Round-the-clock Control Room has been opened to look into passengers’ issues as well as smooth train operations. Additional ticket booking counters were also set up. There were pilgrim waiting area/shed and mela sheds along with the provision of uninterrupted power supply, water supply, cleanliness, security, drinking water, and sufficient toilets for the convenience of passengers. Also, ECoR has emphasized effective announcements at the station and smooth disbursal of tickets through additional ticket booking counters.
ARINDAM GANGULY, OP
