Title - Trains delayed, passengers stranded

Jalandhar: Passengers at the city railway station were left stranded for around four to five hours this morning after the northern grid power failure at 2.30 am brought all trains passing or starting from here to a halt. This led to delay in the departure and the arrival of all trains.As the passengers were caught unawares, the railway station was heavily crowded, with no space to sit and stand anywhere. Almost all trains moving to the city railway station were immediately cancelled because of the grid failure.Not only the railway station, even the outer areas of the station, starting from the entrance towards the parking lot, also witnessed a big rush. City residents who had come to receive their relatives/friends were also seen waiting outside, as the railway authorities had announced the delay in the arrival and the departure of the trains.Almost all trains ran late by around 4 to 5 hours, causing huge inconvenience to the passengers. However, the respite for the passengers was the heavy rain in the morning, which made their wait a little easy.The Delhi-bound Shatabdi Express, which moves at 6 am daily, was late by around 1hour 30 minutes and left the city railway station at 7.21 am, and that too after a diesel engine was attached to it. Even the Jalandhar-bound Shatabdi, which was to depart from Delhi, reached the city late by around 1 hour 45 minutes.An elderly couple, who was to go to Delhi via Shatabdi, reached the railway station at 5.40 am, but ended up waiting for around two hours. “Our son came along to drop us at the station, but following the announcement of the delay, stayed with us at the station. The entire station was badly crowded and there was no space to sit and stand. Even when the train arrived, it was difficult to make way to board the coach due to the rush”, said Rajinder Singh.Similarly, Shan-e-Punjab, which was scheduled to reach the city railway station at 12.57 pm, was late by 1 hour 15 minutes. Katiyar Express was late by five hours. It usually reaches here by 10.15 am. Dadar Express, which was scheduled to reach at 3 pm, was also late by 5 hours.Akal Takth was late by 2 hours and was scheduled to reach the city railway station at 3.20 pm. Jan Sewa Express was late by 5 hours, Saryu Yamuna Express was also late by 40 minutes, while Amritsar Ambala Express was cancelled.A family which was waiting for its daughter-in-law, who was coming from Mumbai by Dadar Express along with a two year old kid, said, “We were informed by our daughter-in-law that their train halted at an isolated place in the wee hours. They did not come to know of the reason until some fellow passengers informed about the power grid failure. We are still waiting for her arrival,” they said.