Title - Passengers go berserk at Budgam railway station in Kashmir angered by train delays

The delay in the movement of trains in Kashmir has led to a situation where the charm of travelling on the rail network is not only dwindling but also forces passengers many time to vent their anger on the railway infrastructure. In one such incident passengers waiting for a train at Budgam railway station went on a rampage and broke all the window panes of the buildings at the railway platform yesterday. The passengers went berserk when the train came one hour late from the scheduled time.“This is becoming an everyday trouble for us,” says a passenger.The Banihal-Baramullah train never come on time allege passengers. The scheduled time for departure of train from North Kashmir’s Baramullah is 4:55 pm which then takes a halt at Central Kashmir’s Budgam district. After this halt the passengers have to wait for another train which according to them always comes late.
“The main problem is the train from Budgam which never arrives on the scheduled time,” says Zahid, a passenger. The delay in timings is causing much inconvenience to the passengers. “This completely disturbs our schedule, we wait for hours and we never reach home at time,” says another passenger.“Yesterday it crossed all the limits says a passenger. It came late by one hour. Till 7 pm we were waiting at platform.” And when they train came late the passengers broke the window panes of main building of the railway station. According to people the timing of departure was changed after PM Manmohan Singh inaugurated the train some months back.
“Till then it was all fine but ever since Manmohan Singh inaugurated the railway we are facing inconveniences,” says another passenger. However, according to Chief Controller Vikram Jeet Singh the delay was caused due to the maintenance of train. “Every day we send our trains for maintenance for nearly five hours, it takes time due to which sometimes delay takes place,” he says.
There are certain other reasons he says which adds to this problem. We have currently three trains plying which make six rounds in a day and sometimes the rush is too heavy that unloading of passengers also take time, he adds. He also says that they too face the pressure at the hands of higher officials to make it sure that trains run on time.“We always ensure that train leaves on time but sometimes its unavoidable,” he says.