SAMBALPUR: As a mark of protest against the decision to close the century-old Sambalpur Road Railway Station, residents under the aegis of Sachetan Sambalpur Nagarika Committee (SSNC) on Friday formed a human chain. The decision to close the station was taken in the wake of track doubling work being taken up between Sambalpur station and the city railway station.
On March 23, the East Coast Railway issued a notification stating the closure of the Sambalpur Road Railway Station on permanent basis for passenger traffic with effect from April 1. The decision triggered resentment among the locals and they staged rail roko on March 27.
Following this, a meeting of railway officials and representatives of the citizens was also held on March 30 and a subsequent survey found that keeping the Sambalpur Road Railway station was not feasible as it is very close to the main railway station. The Railway officials also informed the same to the members of SSNC through a letter issued on July 16.
One of the agitators and senior lawyer Sureswar Mishra said the 125-year-old station is one of the oldest in the region with a heritage value. “Though we were assured in the meeting held on March 30 that the station would be kept operational, they didn’t take any initiative in that regard. We were forced to form the human chain to remind the Railways of their promises,” added Mishra.
The closure of the station has hit the livelihood of rickshaw pullers, auto rickshaw drivers besides eateries and many other shopkeepers in the area along with inconveniencing train passengers who board and alight from here.