CHENNAI: Advertisements by a private company announcing to operate three pairs of special trains at a premium fare from Chennai to Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam and Ernakulam via Madurai and Tirunelveli from November 9 to 13, around Deepavali, has raised eyebrows over their fares and for starting bookings before getting approval. Although Southern Railway officials said the private company’s request is under processing, the company claimed they would receive approval by Monday.
The advertisements doing rounds on social media offer tickets for travel to Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam and Ernakulam from Chennai on November 9, 10, and 11. The return trains are scheduled for November 10, 11 and 12 with stoppages at Tirunelveli, Nagercoil, Virudhunagar, Madurai, and Tiruchy. After a section of rail passengers expressed strong displeasure over the ticket fare, the company’s portal disabled the ticket booking option on Sunday.
When TNIE reached out to the company, one of their employees claimed that they would be operating round-trip journeys between Chennai and Thiruvananthapuram, and the booking options for these trips would be made available on Monday evening.
R Pandiaraja, a member of the zonal rail users consultative committee (ZRUCC), SR, said, “Railways should operate special trains to meet the festival demand, especially for the southern districts of Tamil Nadu. However, facilitating a private operator to charge exorbitant fares during the festival season is unacceptable. The private company charges Rs 2,000 for 3AC berths and Rs 3,000 for 2AC from Chennai Egmore to Madurai.”
K Jeyasankar, secretary of the Sivakasi-based Tamil Nadu Calendar Manufacturers Association, said, “A large number of people from southern districts travel to Chennai and Puducherry for education and employment. Efforts to reduce the omnibus fares have been unsuccessful. We need two special trains from Chennai to Sengottai, Sivakasi, Rajapalayam and Tenkasi.”