GUWAHATI, Aug 14 - Rail link between the Northeast and rest of the country remained snapped for the second consecutive day due to floods in Bihar and the Railway Board has decided to cancel all incoming trains from various parts of the country towards the northeastern region till 10 am on August 16.
�The Railway Board has decided to cancel all incoming trains from various parts of the country towards the North East region which were to reach either Katihar or Malda Town till 10 am of August 16,� Pranav Jyoti Sharma, Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) said.
He said that senior Railway officials are at stationed at sites affected by flooding and water levels are being constantly monitored.
�Booking refund counters are being kept open at Katihar, New Jalpaiguri and Guwahati stations to facilitate easy refund to passengers and officials are keeping a strict vigil to ensure that catering units are fully stocked with essential food items and passengers are not put to any inconvenience. Passengers are being intimated through SMS about cancellation of passenger trains. Frequent announcements are also being made through PA system at stations,� Sharma said.
Thousands of commuters have been left stranded at various stations across the NFR zone since yesterday since the rail link got snapped after rising water-levels inundated tracks at Katihar and Alipurduar divisions.
Normal train traffic is still plying from New Jalpaiguri eastwards towards Guwahati and further up to Dibrugarh, Silchar, Murkongselek and Agartala.
�However, train service to and from NFR zone to other parts of the country continue to remain disrupted. Services are only likely to resume once flood water recede and the track is certified fit for traffic,� said an official.
A number of trains including the Dibrugarh-Howrah Kamrup Express, the Dibrugarh-New Delhi Rajdhani Express and the Dibrugarh-Delhi Brahmaputra Mail were cancelled today.
In addition, NFR has also announced cancellation of a number of trains scheduled for tomorrow. Among them are the Guwahati-Rajendranagar Capital Express, the Guwahati-Bangalore Express, the North East Express, the Saraighat Express, the Guwahati-Lokmanya Tilak Terminus Express and the Kamakhya-Bangalore Express.
