The Indian Railway said it has cancelled 68 incoming and outgoing trains from Jammu and Katra stations till September 30 due to rains, and 24 trains are scheduled to resume. Because of the heavy rains and flash flood, tail traffic has remained suspended in the Jammu railway division for the past eight days due to misalignment and breaches at multiple locations in the Pathankot-Jammu section.
In the wake of these developments, thousands of people, especially pilgrims, were stranded as heavy rains lashed the Jammu region August 26 onwards, severely disrupting rail and road traffic. A landslide reported near the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra claimed 34 lives. The Jammu region recorded its heaviest rainfall since 1910, at 380 mm by Wednesday.
"To facilitate the movement of stranded passengers, the following train services are being run: Jammu Tawi-Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra (2 shuttle services), Jammu Tawi-Kolkata, and Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra-New Delhi," an official told PTI.
Four trains inducted in the Jammu-Katra section
Four trains have been inducted in the Jammu-Katra section for shuttle service that will operate from September 1 to 15, the official said.
The Railways restored the operation of Sampark Kranti and Sealdah Express trains, Kantri Express, Vande Bharat, Trivandrum Express and shuttle services.
Vande Bharat train to resume operation from Sept 7
The Vande Bharat train will resume operation from September 7. A total of 5,784 stranded passengers have been ferried in seven trains from Jammu for their onward journey.
"Shuttle services have been started with the induction of two pairs of trains to facilitate the movement of locals and stranded passengers between Jammu and Katra have started," the official said, adding that Jammu-Kolkata and Vaishno Devi-New Delhi trains are running.
IMD predicts more rains for Jammu and Kashmir
It should be noted that heavy rains lashed several parts of Kashmir on Tuesday evening, as the Meteorological Department predicts the possibility of heavy falls in some areas of the valley, officials said.
Many areas of the Kashmir valley experienced intermittent rainfall on Tuesday evening, the officials said and added that the intensity of the rainfall was light to moderate in most parts, some areas in south Kashmir experienced heavy falls.
The officials said all the concerned departments were on high alert in view of the inclement weather forecast, but so far, River Jhelum and other water bodies in the valley were flowing much below the flood alert mark.
With inputs from PTI
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