Kerala to enforce strict rules for train returnees

Kerala to enforce strict rules for train returnees

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Thiruvananthapuram  13.05.2020

: In line with the protocol set for those seeking to return to the state from other states via road, the state government has made entry pass and registration mandatory for those arriving by train also.

“The person/s with valid railway ticket for journey to Kerala should apply for entry pass in covid19jagratha portal https://covid19jagratha.kerala.nic.in. The persons who have already applied for pass in the portal, opting different modes of travel other than train, should resubmit the application afresh, indicating the mode of travel as train,” a government order in this regard said.

It said passengers included in a single ticket should form ‘a group’ while submitting the application for pass in the ‘covid19jagratha’ portal. “The details of departing station, destination station, train/special train number and PNR number must be entered in the portal,” it said.

The details of passengers will be verified at the arriving station, and a medical screening will be conducted.

Full report on www.toi.in

Excise lays down rules for functioning of toddy shops in Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram/ Kochi: The excise department has issued a set of guidelines for the functioning of toddy shops, that will open from Wednesday, based on the lockdown regulations.

According to the guidelines issued by excise commissioner S Aananthakrishnan, customers will have the permission to buy toddy as parcel to their houses, and will not be allowed to consume it in the shop or the premises. The toddy shops have been denied permission to cook and serve or sell food. All toddy shops will have to maintain adequate soap and water for hand washing, and the employees should use face mask and gloves while working.

The premises should be sanitized every day before beginning to function and the public will not be allowed to gather near the toddy shops. Each customer is allowed to hold a maximum of 1.5 litres of toddy only at a time. The shops have been asked to ensure that not more than 1.5 litres is sold to a customer. TNN

All trains booked for a week, to transport 1.7L passengers

All trains booked for a week, to transport 1.7L passengers

Dipak.Dash@timesgroup.com

New Delhi  13.05.2020

: By Tuesday evening, almost all 30 special trains being run by railways were booked for the first seven days. Officials said over 90,000 tickets were sold for 1.69 lakh passengers.

Nearly 8,000 passengers boarded the first eight special trains which started their journey from six different stations on Tuesday. Another nine special trains will start from the originating stations on Wednesday. “Almost all trains are booked for a week and on average each of them will accommodate between 800 to 1,100 passengers. In a week, we will be ferrying around 1.7 lakh passengers,” said an official. Railways also said nearly 6.8 lakh stranded guest workers, tourists and students have been transported by Shramik Special trains till Tuesday afternoon, which was the biggest ever evacuation exercise that the India Railways has undertaken.

According to sources, maximum booking of 12,845 berths for passengers were done on Howrah-New Delhi special trains followed by Bengaluru-New Delhi (11,643) and Dibrugarh-New Delhi (11,172). The other three special trains which saw maximum booking of passengers were Mumbai-New Delhi (10,991), New Delhi-Dibrugarh (10,722) and New Delhi-Howrah (10,174). There will be daily operation of special trains on these routes. Officials said it’s taking a couple of days for mobilisation of the rakes at the required stations for running these trains.

Meanwhile, the health department of Delhi government issued a standard operating procedure saying that all asymptomatic people reaching the national capital would be allowed to go to their respective homes.

Full report on www.toi.in

JOURNEY OF LIFETIME: Passengers at New Delhi railway station on Tuesday. Many reached the station hours before the departure time

Tickets sold out, no social distancing on trains to Delhi

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai: 13.05.2020

Tickets on Chennai-New Delhi AC train scheduled to depart on Friday and Sunday were sold out soon after bookings opened on Tuesday morning.

Reservation status of these two trains – one on Friday and another on Sunday – has touched wait list 1 and bookings have been suspended because waitlist is not allowed on the services. The train will have one AC First Class coach, five AC 2 tier coaches coaches and 11 AC 3 tier coaches.

However, there will not be social distancing in the train as passengers will be occupying all berths unlike in Shramik special trains for guest workers where middle berth and one side berth was left unoccupied.

The high fare, air conditioned coaches in violation of ministry of health's order for confined space and mandatory download of Arogya Setu app to travel have caused a concern among passengers. However, several have decided to take the risk because for them travelling to their home or work is crucial.

And booking was not easy. K V Bharadwaj, who works in Delhi, who had booked to travel on Friday, said “I tried to book soon after I heard about the train. I tried on Monday evening but a message popped up that booking has been postponed to 6pm. I had to try whole night before I got through by around 9.45am.”

He is happy that he managed to get the ticket. “I have to reach Delhi. Its AC train. But I do not worry about the risks. All I need is travel for work.” The Delhi-Chennai train too was sold out soon after booking opened on Monday night.

Sriharan Balan of Madura Travels said that “Several people wants to go to Delhi because they have been stuck here for so many days. More than 2,000 people are looking to travel to Delhi alone. There are more numbers waiting for flights and trains. Some have personal emergencies others have to report for work.”

However, people raise concern about the way in which the trains are going to be operated inspite of a request from the state government.

T Sadagopan, a frequent traveler and consumer activist, said “There is a need to ensure safety of passengers. The air-conditioned train is in contradiction to the government stand which warned against using airconditioned buildings. The service will be a risk for the people who travel because they can pick up infection as there is no social distancing and people have to share toilets. It may be fine for a two hours to four hours journey but not for a journey that lasts for several hours.”

Reservation status of the two trains – one on Friday and another on Sunday – has touched wait list 1 and bookings have been suspended because waitlist is not allowed on the services

Lockdown doubts

Rickshaw, taxi drivers leave for home in their vehicles

Rickshaw, taxi drivers leave for home in their vehicles

The drivers, who usually go home during the summer, may not return soon this time

12/05/2020, AJEET MAHALE,MUMBAI

Auto drivers heading for their home towns stuck in a traffic jam at Kasara ghat.Special Arrangement

Taxi and autorickshaw drivers in the city have decided not to follow the precedent set by most migrants in the city: walking, cycling or even going home in trucks. The drivers are leaving for their hometowns in their own vehicles, most of them without the requisite permit or no-objection certificate from the police.

“We don’t know what is going to happen. There is no clarity on whether we will get seats on trains, and hence, people have taken this decision,” said Jharilal Pandit, a rickshaw driver from Marol.

Hundreds of drivers have already left the city and many more are preparing to do so, and the city could see a shortage of autorickshaws and taxis once the lockdown is lifted. May is usually when they leave for their hometowns, but the lockdown has ensured many more go. “Around 3,000 taxi drivers may have left by now,” said A.L. Quadros of the Mumbai Taximen’s Union. Had the government done something to help them through April, fewer people may have gone, he said.

“Several rickshaw drivers have already gone. Some were stopped at toll nakas and check posts, but were eventually allowed to go. There is fear among drivers as to what will happen if they remain in the city,” Mr. Pandit pointed out.

Union officials said rickshaw drivers were going in groups of 15 or 20, either with their families or with other drivers. “We are a group of 15 autorickshaw drivers and have stocked up on dry rations as well as key spare parts in case of a breakdown,” said a rickshaw driver from Jharkhand who wished to remain anonymous. He said they planned to take several halts along the way and drive cautiously. “There is no requirement for us to reach home at the earliest. But we want to leave this city as soon as possible,” he said.

Thampi Kurien from the Mumbai Rickshawmen’s Union, estimated that 10% of the city’s autorickshaw drivers may have left. “We can no longer tell them to stay back. There is no saying when this lockdown will end. It’s a risky journey, but so is going by foot. I only get calls from drivers once they cross the border. Had the State government acted sooner in helping them, this would not have been the situation,” he said.

Transport department officials said they were preparing to create an online application to help drivers get a temporary permit to travel outside the State. “The permit is usually taken by several taxi drivers who go home during the summer. Typically, the number of taxi and rickshaw drivers in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region drops by around 15%,” a senior transport department official said.

However, while most of them usually come back after the summer break ends, Mr. Pandit believes those who have left this time will only return once things stabilise in the city.

Mumbai-Delhi train fully booked in minutes

Mumbai-Delhi train fully booked in minutes

Ticket costs ₹2,420 for now; passengers to be screened before boarding

12/05/2020, AJEET MAHALE,MUMBAI

(Left) Hoping to catch a vehicle to return home, migrant workers and their family walking on the Mumbai-Nashik Highway on Monday; and migrants from Uttar Pradesh on board a truck. Arunangsu Roy Chowdhury

Minutes after the online ticket window opened on Monday evening, the first special Mumbai-Delhi train to be run on Tuesday was completely booked. The train will leave Mumbai Central at 5.30 p.m. and reach New Delhi railway station at 9.05 a.m.

The tickets can only be booked through the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation portal or the mobile application, with a forward booking window of up to one week. Barring 15 pairs of trains, all other trains are still cancelled.

A dynamic pricing policy is in force, with tickets priced according to the Rajdhani Express rates. A ticket between Mumbai Central and New Delhi costs ₹2,420.

Passengers have been asked to arrive at the station at least 90 minutes before the departure time. The ticket also mentions that dry, ready-to-eat meals and packaged drinking water “will be available in the train on payment”. The trains only have three-tier air-conditioned (AC), two-tier AC and First AC compartments. “Passengers will be checked before boarding. Any passenger who shows signs (of COVID-19) will not be allowed to board,” said Ravinder Bhakar, chief public relations officer, WR.

No linen will provided on trains and there will be minimal staff. The number of stops have also been curtailed. Mr. Bhakar said the train was fully booked, including the middle berth in three-tier AC coaches.

The Railways were initially not allowing the Shramik Special trains for migrant workers to run at full capacity in line with physical distancing norms. The reduction of the middle berth in Shramik Special trains had reduced each coach’s capacity to 54 seats from the regular 72 seats. As a result, the trains have only been carrying between 1,100 and 1,200 passengers every day.

However, a few days ago, railway officials said the policy had been changed to allow middle berths. This will add nearly 400 seats to each train’s capacity.

Order issued for full salary of nurses, govt. tells HC

Order issued for full salary of nurses, govt. tells HC

12/05/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT ,KOCHI

The State government has informed the Kerala High Court that it has issued an order directing all private hospital managements to pay nurses full salary and not to reduce the number of nurses in their respective hospitals.

The government made the submission when a public interest litigation against the move of the private hospital managements to reduce salaries and cut down the strength of the nurses came up for hearing.

According to the petitioner, Prakash John of Thrissur, Union Ministry of Labour and Employment had directed all the Chief Secretaries to ensure that private sector employees were not terminated from service or their wages reduced in the name of lockdown.

The State Labour Department had also issued a similar order. Despite these orders, the private hospital managements were going ahead with the move to reduce the salary of nurses and in some cases terminate them, the petitioner alleged.