Wire glitch strands trains in Bangalore

Hundreds of passengers travelling to Chennai from Bangalore on the double-decker train on Sunday afternoon were in for a harrowing time as the train was stranded for over three hours at the K R Puram station: The overhead electrical cable at the station was found severed and hanging.

The malfunctioning affected the movements of several trains on the route.

Following the glitch, tempers ran high at the station as hundreds of stranded passengers creating ruckus, arguing with railway officials for not being able to repair the wire.

Eyewitnesses said the situation went out of control when some agitated passengers pushed against the counters at the station.

According to officials, the overhead electrification wire was found severed and hanging between Whitefield Satellite Goods Terminal and Krishnarajapuram Railway Station.

The Chennai-bound 10-coach train, with a seating capacity of 120 in each coach, reached K R Puram at 3:10 pm. About 500 passengers, who were supposed to catch connecting trains ahead, were particularly annoyed.

It was only at 5:40 pm that one of the two lines could be repaired and one-way traffic, which had delayed several other trains, was cleared.

At 6:10 pm, the Bangalore-Chennai train left the K R Puram station. The second line, for incoming trains, could not be restored till late on Sunday night.

Subhash, who was travelling with his family to Chennai, said, “The officials did nothing for three hours. They could have got the train pulled by a diesel locomotive till the next station—Whitefield. It was only a matter of 5 km. But it seems nobody was bothered about the plight of passengers.”

Sujatha, another passenger travelling on the same train, with her daughter, said, “It was a harrowing experience at the station. My daughter was petrified by it. The railway officials were unable to provide any solution to the problem and took their own time in conducting the repair work.”

Officials said due to overhead electrical cable malfunctioning, all the other trains on the route were also affected. While the Howrah-Yeshwanthpur Duronto, which was stuck on the outskirts of Bangalore for over an hour, was finally pulled by a diesel engine till Yeshwanthpur.

Other major trains to be affected include the Chennai-bound Brindavan Express, the Yeshwanthpur-Patna Premium and the Shatabdi Express.