Diva, Panvel long-distance local trains to reopen soon

Many passengers from the MMR need the MEMU trains for daily commute

Central Railway (CR) announced restoration of a limited number of Mainline EMU services on Vasai Road-Diva-Panvel section from Friday, September 24. CR's CPRO Shivaji Sutar said, "The existing COVID-19 protocols that are mandated for Mumbai suburban trains will also be followed for issue of tickets/passes and travel in mainline EMU services." Wesyern Railway's (WR) Chief Public Relations Officer Sumit Thakur said the WR's services are still being approved.

Many passengers from the MMR need the MEMU trains for daily commute

Passengers had been demanding the restoration for quite some time. A senior official said that the railways had worked out a proposal and sent it to the state government for approval on Tuesday. The proposal mentioned resuming special and limited trips between neighbouring townships to facilitate basic rail transport connectivity. A railway spokesperson said they will go by the Maharashtra government's guidelines and instructions following railway board approvals.

"A number of commuters who stay in areas of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), like Diva, Vasai, Virar, Panvel, used to cross commute in these trains daily and their closure has badly affected everyone. Not everyone goes to Churchgate and Mumbai CSMT, but many work in other parts of the town and these east-west trains used to help a lot," Himanshu Vartak, consultative committee member for Palghar station said.

Government officials are wary of new relaxations before a complete assessment post-Ganpati festivities. Tens and thousands of Mumbaikars who went to their native places are slowly returning.

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Day the proposal was sent to the state government