Train services in Kashmir Valley to resume from November 11

SRINAGAR: After remaining suspended for more than three months, the train services in Kashmir Valley and between it and the Banihal town of Jammu region will resume on November 11, the officials said here on Wednesday.

The authorities are also contemplating to restart the Short Messaging Service (SMS) facility on post-paid mobile phones soon, the official sources here said.

Kashmir’s Divisional Commissioner, Baseer Ahmad Khan, said that he has asked the Railway authorities to restore the train services in the Valley next week. He said that he passed on this direction during a meeting with the railway officials.

The meeting was attended also by senior officials of various districts of the Valley and the police to discuss restoration of railway services in Kashmir. An official handout said that a threadbare discussion was held at the meeting following which Mr. Khan asked the concerned authorities to conduct a track inspection within three days, which will be followed by a trial run on November 10 and the resumption of services from November 11. Before the railway services were suspended on August 5, as many as 13 trains would run up and down between Banihal (Jammu region) and Baramulla (Kaahmir Valley).

The rail services in the Valley and between it and Banihal were suspended on August 5 when Jammu and Kashmir was stripped of its special status under Article 370 and split into two Union Territories (UTs) as a slew of tough measures initiated by the government to prevent disturbances over the issue.

Earlier as part of an overall contingency plan in the run up to the Centre’s contentious move, the Railway police authorities had, after holing a security review meeting in July, asked the railway staff to store dry ration for, at least, four months and drinking water for seven days’ consumption. It had also been asked to “fill” the vehicles “fully” and “hide” in safe places. The meeting was chaired by Sudesh Nugya, ASC Budgam Railway Police in the backdrop of “intelligence inputs suggesting forecast of deteriorating situation” in Kashmir Valley.