“No power, no water and no response from authorities.” This is how passengers of Chennai Express (Train number 0608) described their 17-hour-long journey from Nagarcoil Junction to Chennai Egmore after their arrival here on Sunday. The passengers lodged a complaint with the Southern Railway.
According to the 55 passengers who gave a written complaint to officials at the Egmore station, power and water supply was interrupted inside the train right from the beginning of the journey from Nagarcoil. Over 300 passengers were on the special train.
Speaking to The Hindu , Abdul Karim, a passenger who boarded the train from Tirunelveli, said many passengers complained to the Travelling Ticket Examiner (TTE) about the lack of power and water in the compartments. “Subsequently, three electricians tried to repair the fault at Maniyachchi station but failed,” the passenger added.
Passengers had to travel all night without electricity and water. Eleven-year-old Wasim, who was in the train with his mother and brother, said the journey was a ‘scary experience' as the compartments were dark. They were also stinking, he added.
“On Saturday night, we crossed Madurai, Dindigul and Erode, where we contacted the respective station masters, but nothing was done. Moreover, the train was running extremely late,” said Senthil Kumar, from Virudhunagar.
Abu Bakkar, who was travelling to Chennai with 54 others to attend a wedding, missed the occasion owing to the four-hour delay in arrival of the train. Abu Bakkar and a few others lodged a formal complaint with the Station Master on duty at Chennai Egmore citing their ordeal.
The station master on duty said he had received a complaint from passengers and that he would forward it to his higher officials.
