The first Shramik special train from Chennai in Tamil Nadu chugged off from the Dr MGR Chennai Central station with 1,038 migrant workers for Jagannathpur in Odisha on Saturday night. They underwent thermal screening before boarding the train.
The Shramik Special train departed from Dr. MGR Chennai Central to Jagannathpur (Odisha) at 21:55 hrs on 9-05-2020 carrying 1038 passengers registered and noimnated by the Govt of TN. Thermal screening of passengers done and social distancing ensured while boarding and on board. pic.twitter.com/XpajE9B1nT
— @GMSouthernrailway (@GMSRailway) May 9, 2020
At 9.30 pm on Saturday, a Shramik train departed from Katpadi in Vellore district to Danapur in Bihar, carrying 1,126 passengers. Earlier on Saturday, another Shramik train left for Akbarpur in Uttar Pradesh from the Coimbatore railway station with 1,140 stranded migrant workers.
On Friday night, two special trains carrying migrant workers and others left for Bihar's Saharsa and Jharkhand's Hatia from Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore and Katpadi respectively.
According to the Southern Railway, the train to Saharsa (Bihar) had 1,140 passengers. The train to Hatia carried patients and their caregivers from Vellore who had come for treatment at the Christian Medical College Hospital (CMC). When the nationwide lockdown was announced in March, these patients were stranded in the state.
On Saturday, the Tamil Nadu government announced that it will bear the travel expenses of migrant labourers being sent back home. A Government Order (GO), dated May 7, from the Revenue and Disaster Management Department was issued in this regard.
On April 29, the Ministry of Home Affairs allowed the inter-state movement of stranded migrant workers, tourists and others across the country.
The first train from Tamil Nadu left from Katpadi station late on May 6 to Hatia in Jharkhand carrying 1,230 passengers. The passengers — patients at the Christian Medical College (CMC) and their families — were brought to the Katpadi railway junction in 16 buses by the Vellore district administration.
The first Migrants Special train, "Shramik Special' from Tamilnadu departed today (6th May) at 22:50 from Katpadi junction to Hatia Station in Jharkhand. pic.twitter.com/NdU883Bdvf
— @GMSouthernrailway (@GMSRailway) May 6, 2020