A family who avoided expensive flight tickets during Diwali festive season ended up on an exhausting travel experience as a train journey from Indore to Lucknow was delayed almost eight hours.
Social media is abuzz with discussions about railway punctuality, passenger convenience and how travellers are treated during peak holiday periods.
Vaibhav Jain CEO posted his frustration . He said that he and family were going from Indore to Lucknow for Diwali but since flight tickets became very expensive during the festive season they chose train travel instead.
The family booked tickets on Mahakal Express (20414) so that they could travel comfortably. Jain said travelling by train would also give his two-year old daughter a chance to travel by train. The family was considering travelling by car but finally chose the train.
But their plans didn’t work out. Mahakal Express was running about 7.5 hours late so the family waited a lot longer than expected. Jain said the original journey should have taken only around 14 hours so this additional delay was quite a hassle.
He was disappointed that Indian Railways had not planned how it would compete with airlines when passengers were still facing such big delays; bad management too, he said and regretted choosing the train for his festive journey.
His post went viral quickly online. People posted opinions about the situation on Twitter and several people worried about railway delays (especially during holidays when families rely on trains to get back home).
Some users however had a different take on it. One social media user said that the train had left its originating station nearly six hours late. So according to this argument, the delay after departure was less than two-and-a-half hours not eight hours long.
Another commenter sarcastically said Jain should get on the Duronto Express which he said could have even longer delays. Others used it as an opportunity to bring up broader issues of accountability and quality of railway services.
The incident has once again highlighted the difficulties passengers face during India’s festive travel rush. Diwali is one of the busiest times for transportation as millions travel to meet relatives and celebrate with their families. Higher airfares push people towards trains increasing pressure on railway network.
Indian Railways is constantly introducing premium services and improving passenger facilities but punctuality is still a concern for travellers. If you have young children, elderly family members or fixed schedule then long delays make an otherwise affordable journey stressful.
Jain’s story has therefore become part of a wider online conversation about whether affordable train travel can also be reliable. For many passengers saving money matters but getting to where they want to go on time does too.
Comments