Patna: The railways has cancelled seven passenger trains and diverted the routes of 10 others in view of ongoing non-interlocking (NI) work at Neora station, falling under Danapur division of the East Central Railway (ECR). The disruption is part of a broader plan to enhance rail connectivity on the Neora-Jat Dumri new rail line which began on April 18 and it will continue until April 26.According to ECR’s chief public relations officer (CPRO) Saraswati Chandra, the railways cancelled services of the short-distance passenger trains. Among those suspended are trains operating between Patna and Sasaram, Patna and Deen Dayal Upadhyay (DDU), Patna and Ara as well as DDU-Buxar passenger services, he said, adding certain MEMU services between Patna and DDU have also been withdrawn temporarily during the period.In addition to cancellations, several long-distance trains have been diverted to facilitate the infrastructure upgrade. The New Delhi-Rajendra Nagar Terminal special (03294) is being rerouted via DDU-Gaya-Jehanabad-Patna route while the Indore-Patna Express (19321) will also operate on an altered route via DDU-Gaya-Jehanabad route, the CPRO said.Similarly, Kamakhya-Delhi Express (15658) is also running on a diverted route through Patna- Jehanabad-Gaya-DDU route. Meanwhile, the Ajmer-Bhagalpur Express (13424) is being operated via DDU-Gaya-Jehanabad-Patna instead of its usual DDU-Patna-Jhajha route, he said, adding Okha-Guwahati Express, LTT-Dibrugarh Express, Surat-Bhagalpur Express, Anand Vihar-Malda Town Express and Patna-CST Mumbai Express will remain diverted to an alternative route.In addition, the railways has short terminated at least six trains, rescheduled departure of 15 other long distance mail and express trains and 21 others will run with controlled speed during NI work period, the CPRO said, adding non-interlocking work is crucial for commissioning the new rail line and ensuring safer and more efficient train operations in future.Meanwhile, the railways has decided to run one pair special train (05503/05504) between Raxaul and Howrah on April 22 and 26 to clear the rush on this particular route. The special train will leave Raxaul at 4pm and reach Howrah at 8.15am next day. On its return on April 23 and 27, it will leave Howrah at 11.30am and reach Raxaul at 4.30am next day, sources said.
