Dhanbad – Chandrapura rail route facing underground fire

Shashank S

Bokaro ( Jharkhand ) :  Several major Mail and Express trains including Shatabdi Exp on Ranchi—Dhanbad railway route will have to get diverted avoiding the Dhanbad- Chandrapura (Bokaro) rail route which is facing underground fire and will have to pass through Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Gomoh railway station  which will take more time and passengers will have to pay more as fare.

The high level meeting  summoned  at New Delhi between Railways, Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL), Dhanbad Deputy Commissioner (DC), Director General (DG), Mines Safety, and Additional Secretary, Coal, on May 6, 2017, failed to decide when plying of trains on Dhanbad—Chandrapura rail route which is witnessing underground fire will stop putting the ball in PMO court.

Despite strong warning given by DG, Mines Safety, pleading for immediate stoppage of plying of all mail, express and goods trains passing   via Dhanbad –Chandrapura railway route   due to underground fire being witnessed at Senghra Baansjora  railway station falling under Dhanbad railway division, the meeting  failed to reach any  conclusion on the matter.

Dhanbad DC A Dodde said his prime concern is to ensure safety from underground fire being witnessed at Senghra Bansjora railway station.” I  will depute a district  official along with cops at Bansjora  railway station till a final decision  on the issue  is taken,” stated Dodde.

As  per high level railway sources, railways will have to construct 72 km of  a new railway line away from the present underground fire zone on Dhanbad—Chandrapura route which will require Rs 5,000 crores and take at least 6 to 7  years to complete.

Once plying  of trains are stopped on present Dhanbad –Chandrapura route  more than one dozen Mail  and Express trains including Ranchi-Howrah Shatabdi express , Hatia—Patna Patliputra Express, Hatia—Gorakhpur Maurya Express , Ranchi –Dhanbad  intercity, Dhanbad- Muri train, Bhagalpur –Hatia Vananchal Express, Bhagalpur—Ranchi train,  Dumka –Ranchi Express, Ranchi -Assam Kamakhya Express, Darbhanga—Hyderabad Express, Howrah—Bhopal Express  and Alleppy Express  which passes through the present route will now pass via Gomoh  station.

Railway sources stated that for taking the Gomoh station  rail route, all the above named trains engines will have to be changed from one side to another which will take at least take 20 minutes and as this Grand  Chord route is already  very busy, railways will have to adjust movement of several trains including Goods trains.

Divisional Railway Manager (DRM), Dhanbad, M K Akahury said  that till a final decision is taken on the matter, all the trains  will continue plying on the present route which has been declared  ‘risky’ by DGMS. BCCL MD Gopal Singh, DGMS DDG Sanjiva Ray, additional coal secretary Suresh Kumar also attended the meeting.