Govt announces holiday on Tuesday for Diwali; Passengers swell at Chennai railway station, security beefed up

CHENNAI: Government offices and educational institutions in Tamil Nadu declared a holiday on Tuesday (October 21), on the occasion of Diwali. With this, government employees will get four consecutive days off from the 18th to the 21st. The government also announced that Saturday (October 25) will be a working day.

Lakhs are now leaving Chennai en masse to celebrate Diwali back in their homes. Due to this, the traffic congestion in Chennai has increased twofold. An estimated six lakh passengers have left in buses, trains and in their own vehicles. This is the figure for Thursday and Friday. The transport department and railway authorities have warned that the rush will continue unabated for the next two days. 850 railway police personnel have been deployed to control the passengers at Chennai Central, Egmore, Tambaram railway stations and other railway stations in the city.

In addition to the daily trains from Chennai to various parts of Tamil Nadu, special trains have also been announced. 70 special trains are being operated over the four days. Of these, 20 are trains with unreserved coaches. Therefore, the number of passengers will be higher. On Friday evening, there was a huge rush at Chennai Central and Tambaram railway stations. Waiting list people were not allowed to enter the railway stations. The RPF bomb squad is conducting checks at the stations. The Railway Police said that they are also examining the CCTV footage.