Despite Nagpur emerging as political power house over last 10 years, for the rail commuters, it has been a raw deal so far. Looking back, one can find numerous trains that started ex-Nagpur but were later ‘hijacked’ to other destinations even as travellers in second capital of Maharashtra watched with dismay. Railway Board has been compliant and readily submitted to whim and fancies of a few powerful as they buckled under pressure and snatched away the prestigious trains from Nagpur. The same Railway Board is however dragging its feet when asked to start services for Bengaluru, Prayagraj (Allahabad), Lucknow, Banaras despite consistent demand.

 

The problem with transit trains is that lack of station quota that puts travellers from Nagpur, which are in higher numbers, at disadvantage. In absence of confirmed tickets due to lesser quota, such travellers often have to shell out extra money and chose other costly option to reach their destinations. Vinod Chaturvedi, ex-railwayman, who has seen the ‘loot’ during his service days, says, the decision of railway bosses defies logic. A cursory study of the population profile in Nagpur and surrounding towns reveals sizable number of North Indians. Yet the demand failed to find echo in the Rail Bhavan and travellers have to depend on road transport to visit their homeland. Chaturvedi said the very first train that was snatched away was Nagpur-LTT Super Deluxe.

 

The train was meant to provide overnight connectivity for people from Nagpur and to hinterland. However some super brains in the Railway Ministry decided that Nagpur should be just a transit station and extended Super Deluxe till Shalimar (near Howrah). Thereafter, Gondwana Express was started with much fanfare ex-Nagpur to provide connection to national capital, New Delhi. The train ran till Hazrat Nizamuddin and there was good patronage. But again the Gondwana Express was extended till Bhusaval and Raipur, leaving travellers of Nagpur in lurch. Chaturvedi said the Gondwana Express running is classic example of how the railway mandarins think. Technically, the Gondwana Express that runs from Bhusaval to New Delhi first comes to Nagpur and then via Itarsi, travels further towards Northern India. One who knows the railway map of India would know that nearest distance from Bhusaval to New Delhi is via Khandwa-Itarsi. Yet Railways takes pride in taking Gondwana Express via circuitous route, which Chaturvedi said is quite intriguing. The trend did not stop with these trains, as later two other important trains, including the prestigious Vidarbha Express, was extended to Gondia. Post Super Deluxe, the Vidarbha Express was the most preferred train for those wishing to travel to State Capital, Mumbai.

 

Thereafter, Maharashtra Express, which connects to Pune and ahead to Kolhapur. Earlier, the train used to start ex-Nagpur but was extended to Gondia. Thereafter, a Rajdhani Express, started to provide direct connectivity to New Delhi too was snatched away from Nagpur. The train was first extended till Howrah but due to congestion on route, the train was curtailed till Bilaspur. The exploitation of Nagpur did not stop here as later, an overnight superfast express connecting Nagpur to Secunderabad was started. The train also saw good patronage but later it was extended to Raipur. Chaturvedi said if Railways is so keen to put travellers ex-Nagpur at disadvantage, at it least it can fulfill the long standing demand for a direct connectivity to Bengaluru. A number of people from Nagpur region are based in Bengaluru, the tech capital of country. Hopefully now that Nagpur as emerged as a political powerhouse, the trend in Railway would reverse, said an optimistic Chaturvedi.