Bathinda rly junction not well connected

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, June 20

Bathinda, regarded as among the biggest junctions in Asia, is yet to measure up on the connectivity front. In fact, there is no superfast train between Bathinda and New Delhi, a mere 300 kilometres away during the day time.

Bathinda also has one of the biggest Army cantonments, but only two superfast trains touch it.

The city is devoid of fast connectivity between all major cities of Punjab. There is no superfast train between Bathinda and the major cities of the state, including Amritsar, Ludhiana, Jalandhar and others. More importantly, there are no superfast trains between Bathinda and the state capital of Chandigarh.

Residents of the area say the Railways literally rate Bathinda as the backwaters of Punjab. That is why, it has never found mention in its list of priorities.

The persistent plea by passengers to provide better and fast connectivity even to Delhi has always been ignored.

According to information available, there is no train from Bathinda to Delhi between 8.30 am and 23.30 pm. “After 8.10 am when the Ganganagar Intercity Express leaves, passengers have to wait for about 15 hours for the next train to Bathinda. Only on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday do passengers get trains in the evening at 16.55 pm.”

For the last few years, residents, including industrialists and traders, have been demanding superfast express trains between Bathinda and New Delhi, but in vain.

Sonal Verma, a passenger, said, “The train which starts at 16.55 pm from Bathinda railway station reaches Delhi around 23.45 pm at night. Due to lack of proper connectivity, we again have to wait for the next four-five hours for the next train.”

A senior railway official said, “Many a time, we brought the problem to the notice of the Ambala railway divison authorities but in vain. However, this time they have assured that they will bring about some changes in the time-table so that passengers do not have to wait for too long.”