Cold, foggy conditions affect road, rail transport across state

Tribune News Service

Dehradun, January 29

Bone-chilling cold accompanied by dense fog has thrown life out of gear in the state. The dip in the mercury has brought rail and road transport services to a grinding halt for the past three days.

The situation is likely to remain the same or even worsen as the State Meteorological Department has forecast severe fog in the plains in the coming days.

Passengers are seen huddled together, waiting for an announcement to begin their journey at the ISBT and the railway station. Most of the trains are running over 5 to 6 hours behind schedule while buses are reportedly being delayed by nearly two hours.

Fog has affected 10 Dehradun-bound trains. The railway station is crammed with passengers waiting for trains to arrive or depart.

A passenger, Alok Pandey, lamented that trains coming from eastern Uttar Pradesh were the worst affected due to fog. He said passengers were being forced to spend the night on platforms as waiting halls did not have enough room to accommodate so many people. Janata Express running between Varanasi and Dehradun arrived three hours late today.

Several other trains such as Allahabad-Haridwar Link Express, Howrah-Haridwar Kumbh Express, Delhi-Dehradun Mussoorie Express and Amritsar-Dehradun Express are arriving three to four hours behind schedule.

Railway officials said because of the delay, pairing trains such as Kathgodam Express, which runs between Dehradun and Kathgodam, is also running late. The trains coming from New Delhi have not been affected much compared to those coming from eastern Uttar Pradesh, which are arriving an hour late.

State Meteorological Department Director Anand Sharma said rain might occur at isolated places in the higher reaches of the state due to western disturbances. The temperature in most of the cities would remain more or less constant over the next two to three days, with likelihood of rain, he added.