Mumbai: Why have you forgotten us, Bhiwandi bizmen ask railways

A mainline electric multiple unit train at Diva Junction railway station

Cloth merchants from Bhiwandi have written to the Union railway minister seeking more train services. At present, mainline electric multiple unit (MEMU) trains run on the section from Vasai and Diva to enable commuters to access Bhiwandi. The Diva-Vasai section is a national north-south corridor and has limitations and only eight services have been operated on this section daily for quite some time. Cloth and power loom merchants have now appealed to the railway ministry to increase services to at least 25. The local Diva-Vasai DEMU/MEMU via the Bhiwandi section has been extremely well-received. The number of passengers travelling by these locals has increased considerably in the past twelve years since the services were started in July 2011.

"MEMU locals are economical in comparison to other means of transport for all categories of passengers. Bharat Merchants' Chamber members have factories, warehouses, process houses, etc, and need to travel on regular basis to Bhiwandi, which is known as the Manchester of India. Hundreds of businessmen and lakhs of workers travel to Bhiwandi daily. The Diva-Vasai section is overcrowded in the morning and evening as Bhiwandi is a textile hub with approximately 15 lakh power looms, godowns and industries. In the past five years, there has been no increase in a number of services on this section," said Rajiv Singal, businessman and trustee of the cloth merchants' forum Bharat Merchants' Chamber.

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He added, "Now only eight up and down services are being operated on this section and hence we are requesting Railways to increase the frequency of the train services to 25 to help commuters travel comfortably on this section and reduce congestion." Member of Parliament from Mumbai North, Gopal Shetty, has taken up the matter and shot off a letter to the railway minister.

"I have requested Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw to look into this matter on an urgency basis and instruct the authorities concerned to increase the number of services between Diva and Vasai via the Bhiwandi section at the earliest," Shetty said. Local railway officials said they will examine the feasibility of available paths for new trains and if there is scope without disturbing existing schedules, they will take up the matter.

RTO acts against buses for covering reflective tapes

The Maharashtra transport department has acted against 89 public transport buses for displaying advertisements and covering the mandatory reflective tapes on buses. "We have so far taken action against 89 buses for improper use and display of ads. Permissions for ad display are issued for the year. The bus undertaking has taken permission in two stages and total nods taken till today are for 2,902 buses at the rate of Rs 2,000 per bus," Bharat Kalaskar, deputy transport commissioner (road safety cell) and transport officer, said.

2011
Year Diva-Vasai MEMU services were started