Bengaluru - Ernakulam Vandebharat stopped; setback for passengers during Onam; alleged pressure of private bus lobby

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Bengaluru-Eranakulam Vandebharat service, which was a relief to the passengers from the extortionate fares of private buses, has been discontinued within a month of the start of service. This Vandebharat started running as a special service on July 25 after being idle for five months but was stopped on August 26. This is a big setback for commuters during the busy season of Onam.

The Railways explained that this service was stopped for the time being considering the complaint of the Bangalore section that the Ernakulam service was difficult to manage with the start of the new Vandebharat from Bengaluru to Madurai. However, it is alleged that this decision is due to the pressure of the private bus lobby.

With more than half a million passengers a week, the Bengaluru-Eranakulam route is a lucrative business for private luxury bus operators. The arrival of Vandebharat here was a setback for them. Private services extort passengers during onam by raising AC sleeper ticket prices by up to Rs 5000. With the cancellation of Vandebharat and non-availability of tickets on other trains, passengers will have to rely on extortionate fares of private buses.

Vandebharat rake for Bengaluru service was received in February but the train was left at Kochuveli on the pretext of lack of maintenance facility in Ernakulam. This Vande Bharat started running on July 25 when the protests got heavy. The Vandebharat train, which was halted at Ernakulam after the termination of service, was shifted to Kochuveli on Thursday as the protests intensified again.

No use despite full booking

• The eight-coach train had 105% booking to Bengaluru and 88% to Ernakulam.
• Mangaluru-Goa Vandebharat, which started in the same period, has only 31% booking. Still it continues to serve
• The schedule was to leave Ernakulam at 12:30 PM on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday and reach Bengaluru at 10:00 PM.
• On Thursday, Saturday and Monday, this Vandebharat left at 5:30 am and reached Ernakulam at 2:20 pm.
• 1465 rupees for chair car and 2945 rupees for executive chair