CHENNAI: Days after extending the lockdown till June 7, the Tamil Nadu government has extended the inter-district travel restrictions for rail and air travellers too.
Those travelling by rail and air also must register at the government's web portal (https://eregister.tnega.org) before the journey by submitting relevant documents. This came into force from Sunday. Earlier, only those travelling inter-district by private vehicles needed to register in the portal.
Interestingly, rail and air travel will also be allowed only for medical emergencies and final rituals.
The inter-district travel restrictions were in force since May 17 when the state government imposed an intense lockdown to combat the second wave of Covid 19. However, people were allowed to travel via rail and air without having to register in the web portal.
“The police deployed at stations and check posts had been directed to verify the e-registration for both air and train passengers,” said a senior government official on Monday.
Similarly, the inter-district travel for weddings, which was suspended since May 17, was allowed later with some riders for a few days. However, again on May 24 the government dropped weddings from the emergency event category.
The fresh curbs are expected to impact the patronage of trains and flights thereby resulting in cancellation of services.
A senior railway official said owing to poor patronage train services in several routes already cancelled till second week of June.
“With 112 trains, the zonal railway caters to passengers in the State, Kerala and other parts of the Country. As of now, these trains receive a minimum patronage level for operation. We will not verify the e-registration of passengers mandated by the State government. Passengers with confirmed tickets will be allowed to travel."