THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The minister in-charge of railways in the state, G Sudhakaran, has written to Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal demanding him to cancel the decision to stop the seven trains, including special trains, servicing in the state.
The demand was made after the railway board decided to cancel the special Jan Shatabdi and Venad Express due to poor patronage, from Saturday. The minister said the travel woes would increase, especially for office-goers, if the trains are cancelled.
“The decision to cancel the train services comes at a time when more offices have started functioning and long-distance bus services are not fully restored,” said the minister in the letter. The passenger groups have also decided to send mass e-mails to railway officers and railway minister.
Chandy writes to Centre
Former chief minister Oommen Chandy has written to Railway Minister Piyush Goyal seeking immediate resumption of long-distance trains, including the hugely popular Jan Shatabdi. He highlighted that the lives of train commuters have been seriously hit after bus services became erratic following the pandemic. He said status quo should be maintained where all the stops should be reinstated.