Train service resumes partially on Banihal-Budgam route

Passengers in train. —Excelsior/Shakeel
Passengers in train. —Excelsior/Shakeel

Excelsior Correspondent
BANIHAL, July 1: The first train chugged on the railway tracks between Banihal and Budgam district on Thursday as train service resumed partially in the Kashmir Valley after remaining suspended for over seven weeks due to the second wave of COVID-19, officials said.
However, the train service from Budgam in central Kashmir to Baramulla in north Kashmir would remain suspended till further orders, they said.
The Northern Railways has decided to operate two trains daily between Banihal and Budgam with 50 percent passengers.
“A total of 382 passengers travelled in two trains between the two stations amid strict adherence of COVID-19 protocol,” Kashmir Rail Traffic Inspector Baseer Bali said.
The rail service between Banihal and Baramulla was suspended on May 10 in the wake of the second wave of COVID-19.
“The passengers are requested to maintain Covid appropriate behaviour and wear face masks all the time during the travel,” Bali said.