Nagpur: As the city swelters above 42°C, passengers arriving at the main railway station in Sitabuldi are forced into an exhausting walk with heavy luggage, with app-based cab services still unavailable in station premises due to the fear of the autorickshaw mafia.Senior citizens, women and children are among the worst hit, as autorickshaw operators dictate fares in the absence of an organised transport system at one of Central India’s busiest railway junctions.The situation is compounded by delays in launching app-based cab services, months after Central Railway awarded the tender to BharatCabs for dedicated operations.Sources said the rollout is pending due to the mandatory no-objection certificate from a committee headed by the district collector, with members from Regional Transport Office (RTO), Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) and city traffic police. While RTO has the authority to approve fare structures, the final regulatory clearance is still awaited.Officials indicated that documentation is largely complete, but procedural hurdles continue to stall the project. In the meantime, passengers are forced to walk with their luggage outside the station towards Jaistambh Chowk and nearby areas around Tekdi Ganesh temple to take a cab.Commuters have flagged exhaustion, dehydration risks and safety concerns, especially during peak heat hours. The absence of a designated pick-up zone within the station has led to congestion on roads at both gates of railway station, with private vehicles halting haphazardly.Railway authorities, meanwhile, have intensified action against unauthorised autorickshaws operating near the station. Teams from Railway Protection Force (RPF) and Government Railway Police (GRP) are cracking down on operators accused of overcharging passengers.“Once organised cab services begin, the influence of this unregulated network will reduce significantly, ensuring transparency and fixed fares,” a source said.“The tender was revived to ease commuter hardship, but delays in approvals have prolonged the problem,” another official added.
