Five major departure hubs, Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Surat, saw the heaviest outward passenger movement in the run-up to Diwali, according to Indian Railways data.
Officials said more than 56 lakh (5.6 million) passengers traveled from the 16 stations in these regions between November 1 and 6. Delhi and Mumbai together accounted for 34.77 lakh of the departures, or 61 percent of the total. The two cities saw an average of nearly 5.8 lakh passengers boarding trains every day.
About 30 lakh of the passengers, or 52.5 percent, held reserved tickets, while 27 lakh, or 47.5 percent, traveled in unreserved or general class. In Delhi and Mumbai, passengers in reserved classes, meaning sleeper and AC, outnumbered those in unreserved coaches. In Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Surat, unreserved travelers made up the larger share.
Anticipating the festive rush, the railways had stepped up crowd-control and security arrangements. Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw explained the measures at a press conference on Saturday. He said holding areas had been created at around 20 stations to manage crowds and ensure efficient entry and exit of passengers, with ticket counters set up inside these areas.
He added that many more scanning counters had been installed so that passengers would not face long queues at security checks.
Source: The Indian Express
