City bizmen at receiving end, blame poor connectivity to Delhi

Manav Mander

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, October 21

Being the industrial city, Ludhiana is being affected due to its poor connectivity with Delhi.

One flight and only three trains from the city to Delhi is a cause of inconvenience to industrialists. Adding to their woes is the late running of to-and-fro trains.

Nearly 50,000 people daily commute to Delhi, so only three trains, one flight and 2-3 government-run buses are proving to be inadequate. City businessmen demand that at least two to three more Shatabdi trains should start from Ludhiana to Delhi.

Badish Jindal, president, Federation of Punjab Small Industrial Association (FOPSIA), said the flight from Ludhiana to Delhi is a mere eyewash. “It takes four hours to reach Delhi by road in a private vehicle. There is only one flight, timings of which are inconvenient according to the business hours. One reaches Delhi by road in the same amount of time, as the airport is located on the outskirts and you have to leave early due to the traffic congestion and railway crossing on the way. In the coming days, we are not even sure if there will be a flight as weather may turn bad and foggy,” said Jindal.

Upkar Singh, Officiating president of the Chamber of Industrial and Commercial Undertaking (CICU), said industrialists were facing problems due to the late running of trains. He said three Shatabdi trains run between Ludhiana and Delhi. From Ludhiana to Delhi, the timings of the train are 7 am, 4.40 pm and 7 pm, while the trains from Delhi to Ludhiana are scheduled at 7 am, 7.20 am and 4.30 pm.

“These trains are running late by three to four hours daily. It has caused a lot of inconvenience to industrialist and businessmen who normally go by the morning train and return by the evening train. The inconvenience increases when the train which is scheduled at 7.00 pm from Ludhiana is late, because of which a person is likely to miss his/her flight supposed to be boarded from Delhi airport,” he said.

Talking about the road transport, hosiery manufacturer, Vinay Kansal said for booking a seat in Shatabdi, there was a waiting period of 10-15 days and there were only 2-3 government-run buses which go to Delhi. “Travelling in a private bus causes a lot of inconvenience as it stops at many places in between and generally reaches late. Shatabdi timings should be re-scheduled and more buses and trains should be started between Ludhiana and Delhi. Timings should be set in such a way that a person is able to reach during the office hours and comes back in the evening,” he added.