Ghani leads rail roko

Statesman News service

MALDA,(India) Feb.19. — The railway authorities had to stay their decision of shifting the Gour Express from Sealdah to Chitpur for at least one week from 20 February following Rail roko agitation today led by the former railway minister Mr ABA Ghani Khan Choudhury. Congress workers put rail track block in six points stretching 50 km in Malda district from today afternoon detaining more than 5 trains in this route and on receiving assurances from the Railway authorities they called off the agitation about 5.30 pm. “The general manager, eastern railways, just informed me that the decision to implement shifting terminal of Gour Express has been “deferred temporarily” for seven days. The railway board would take the decision finally and informed us to carry out their fresh decision”, said Mr Rakesh Misra, the Malda DRM. “We had to take such a decision because nearly 20,000 youths came to Malda for appearing railway examination and they were in big trouble to return their homes owing to the agitation”, Mr Misra said. The DRM was forced to declare the decision of the railway authorities on the stage of Congress where the Malda MP and former railway minister staged demonstration in front of the town station. Mr Ghani Khan Choudhury said: “I am happy with the temporarily solution of the present dead lock situation. But we must continuous movement on this issue if the railway authorities do not solve it permanently”. Malda MP, Mr ABA Ghani Khan Choudhury, himself came to Malda town station to put a indefinite rail block to protest against the decision of railway authorities despite several requests and rail block programme launched by the congress in last few days. This decision was taken when the eastern railway authorities finally told reporters yesterday evening that they were determined to shift four such long distances train including the Gour Express from Sealdah to Chitpur in Kokata. It was also decided that from Kaliachak to Harischandrapur the congress workers will put a rail track block in five places on Sunday afternoon and it would be continued till tomorrow planning to stop at least 64 trains passes through this route. Mr. ABA Ghani Khan Choudhury would lead the congress workers at Malda Town Station. On the other hand, the CPIM backed youth organisation also staged demonstration in the English Bazaar town today and tomorrow they would also put a rail track programme here. Addressing at a press conference the division railway manager, Mr. Rakesh Misra said on Saturday that Chitpur station would be better than Sealdah and the authorities are determined to develop the new terminal more with broad aspect in the interest of passengers and it may be like Sealdah and Howrah. The people will be benefited, he claimed. “We are refunding more than 200 tickets every day owing to lack of capacity of the Gour express. If, we can run the train from Malda to Chitpur, we would easily add a few more compartments to the Gour Express to accommodate the left out passengers “, Mr. Misra said. The Malda railway authorities also showed a short length video film focusing the advantages of its new Chitpur terminal and explained how the passengers will go to the hospitals in Kolkata and others destination easily. But the congress leaders are adamant to stop implementation of the decision for Gour express. Addressing a press conference yesterday, the district Congress president, Mrs Rubi Noor, told reporters: “We will never allow the railway authorities to implement their own decision. Dada (ABA Ghani Khan Choudhury) had asked the Union minister, Mr Priya Ranjan Das Munshi, to stop implementing such a decision of the railway authorities, but till now no information has reached from his end.” #

Pic. Anindita Roy