Visakhapatnam: Passengers on Secunderabad-Varanasi-Danapur Express (12791) were experiencing unknown hardships as the train was dragging slowly to its destination.
The train left Seunderabad station at 9.25 am on Thursday and due to incessant rains in Telangana, the train was diverted from Kazipet towards Nagpur via Vijayawada, Duvvada, Vizianagaram, Rayagada and Titlagarh.
The train was to reach in 27 hours but 36 hours had passed and the train was not even close to Danapur. As a result, children, elderly persons and women were suffering due lack of basic facilities.
Sources in the railway said the train slowed down due to derailment of a goods train in Nagpur section. Every train was delayed by more than three hours, the railway official in Vizag said. The passengers were cursing the railway authorities due to inordinate delay in reaching Danapur.
“We are now at Rajgangpur in Odisha and yet to reach Ranchi Junction in Jharkhand. Authorities are stating that it would take another 16 hours to reach Varanasi from Ranchi,’’ said Vaidya Srinivasa Rao, a government teacher from Medak who is travelling to Varanasi along with six members of his family who include two small children.
He said as water was leaking in two third AC compartments, passengers have no facility to use the toilets. They have to move to other coaches. The food served in the pantry car was not fit for human consumption and there were no other sources, he said.
He further said as the trains were going slow, the food vendors at railways stations jacked up the prices.
“One liter bottle is being sold for Rs 40 and we are forced to buy it as we are not sure of getting water in the next station,’’ Srinivas Rao said.
About 80 percent of the passengers are pilgrims travelling to Varanasi to have darshan of Kashi Viswanath.
