RailEnquiry

GUWAHATI: Close to 1,000 people boarded the third special train to Bangalore that left Guwahati on Thursday. Besides, 78 passengers were given free tickets for a train heading to Hyderabad from here. The special trains were introduced for NE natives who had left Bangalore in the wake of the rumoured threats to them after the recent clashes between Bodos and Bengali-speaking Muslims in the Bodoland Territorial Area Districts (BTAD).

The number of passengers who boarded the special train was more than the previous two trains. The third batch of the passengers was given free tickets. It had 17 sleeper coaches, one general coach and two SLR coaches.

"A special helpdesk was set up for the train. The tickets for both the trains were provided free of cost . The tickets were issued as per the registration of names by special nodal officers in various districts," said J M Mahanta, senior research officer, transport.

The special train had a total capacity of 1,394. The numbers of passengers were 1,264. The names of the passengers were recorded by special nodal officers who were appointed by district administrations. "We are thinking about operating another special train on September 25 for those any people who had run away from Bangalore and are still here," said Rockybul Hussein, state forest and environment minister.

"There might have been some confusion because some of the people hadn't registered their names. If necessary, there maybe be another special train for those who were left behind," saidPradyut Bordoloi, power minister.