Protesters disperse after ‘video talks’ with top railway official

The regular commuters on Chengalpattu-Beach EMU have been complaining about the delays that were affecting their daily routine for the past three months. Office goers and students were among the worst affected by the constant delays. 

On Thursday, the EMU from Chengalpattu reached Guduvanchery only at 8.25 am – 25 minutes after the schedule time. If that was not enough, the train was made to stop soon afterwards so as to allow a fast local EMU to Beach to pass, which triggered the protest. 

Angry passengers, numbering about 500, jumped out of the train and staged rail blockade on all three tracks, stopping all trains that were to pass through Guduvanchery. 

Following information, a Rail Protection Force (RPF) team from Tambaram and another team from Guduvanchery police rushed to the spot and along with local station master, held talks to convince the people to give up their protest. But the angry passengers insisted on discussing the matter with a higher official. 

The station master then called the Additional Divisional Railway Manager, who held talks with the protesting passengers over video call. 

Finally, based on the assurance given by the official, the protest was wound up, said railway sources. 

However, by the time the protesters dispersed at 11.30 am, three hours had gone by. This disrupted the schedule of more than 20 trains. The train service turned to normal only in the afternoon, sources said.