Chennai Metro Rail sees nearly empty coaches on weekdays. But on Thursday, it resembled an MTC bus, as through the day, it received one lakh passengers.
Commuters were jostling and occupying every inch available to reach their destinations; most of them were trying to get to Koyambedu.
“It was my only hope to get my family to Koyambedu from Nanganallur. My wife and children will then take a bus to Tiruchi from there,” P. Thirunavukkarasu says.
Wheelchair-bound P. Ashok says he was stranded without help for hours and finally managed to leave his house with the help of his friends.
“But for the Metro Rail today, I can’t imagine how I would be travelling to Koyambedu today,” he says.
But that’s not all. Chennai Metro Rail stations have been used as a source of power for charging their mobiles for hundreds of people . P. Nandakumar, a resident of Ekkatuthangal, which has been cut off from other areas, brought a junction box from his residence and helped many.
For many commuters, mostly those from Velachery and Kotturpuram, the MRTS proved to be a lifeline on Thursday. Many people were seen queuing up and buying tickets at Mandeveli, Kasturibai Nagar and Kotturpuram. “Most of us managed to vacate our hostel today and are going to Chintadripet to a friend’s house. We had to walk till Madhya Kailash from Shastri Nagar and are glad to see the trains functioning,” said K. Mary, who was boarding the train from Kasturibai Nagar Station.
While the trains from Beach station to Velachery were relatively less crowded, the services from Velachery to Beach were jam-packed. There was one difference: instead of working professionals and students, which make up most of the regular crowd on the MRTS line, the trains were filled with families and groups of concerned and worried residents.
At the ticket counters in most stations, notices were pasted stating that trains from Chennai Central had been cancelled. As they are dry, most MRTS stations, especially the one at Chintadripet, are serving as shelters.
