General Manager of Western Railway Visits Bandra Terminus

In view of the heavy passenger traffic during the ongoing festive season of Diwali and Chhath Puja, General Manager, Western Railway, Vivek Kumar Gupta, visited Bandra Terminus Station on 21st October 2025 and conducted a detailed inspection of the passenger facilities, crowd management arrangements and special train operations to ensure smooth handling of the increased passenger traffic. He was accompanied by senior officers from Western Railway Headquarters and Mumbai Central Division. During the visit, the General Manager inspected various areas of Bandra Terminus including the concourse, holding areas, ticket counters, waiting halls and circulating area, and reviewed the preparedness of the station to handle the festive rush effectively.

Following the inspection, Vivek Kumar Gupta addressed the media and briefed them regarding the extensive arrangements made by the Railways' to manage the festive rush and provide comfortable travel to passengers.

According to a press release issued by Vineet Abhishek, Chief Public Relations Officer of Western Railway, during the press briefing the General Manager shared that Indian Railways is operating more than 12,000 trips of holiday special trains during the current festive season. Holding areas, extra ticket counters, drinking water facilities and other amenities are being provided at major stations across the country, while over 12 lakh railway employees are working round-the-clock to ensure smooth and safe travel for passengers during this period.

He further added that, Western Railway is running more than 2,400 trips with nearly 80 pairs of special trains to cater to the festive rush of Diwali and Chhath Puja, most of which are north-bound. Of these, 1,586 trips originate from Gujarat, 738 from Maharashtra and 90 from Madhya Pradesh. These include almost 50 trips of unreserved special trains.

Gupta said that, to provide ease of ticketing, a Mobile UTS facility has been introduced, through which booking staff directly approach passengers for issuing tickets. To manage the additional inflow of passengers, extra personnel from the Railway Protection Force (RPF) and Government Railway Police (GRP) have been deployed at stations to guide passengers and ensure safe, orderly movement in queues. Trains, including both regular and special services, are being escorted by RPF personnel for enhanced safety.

Gupta stated that keeping in mind the safety of passengers, CCTV systems are being monitored 24x7 to avoid any untoward incident. War Rooms have been set up for crowd management at all sensitive stations and are manned round-the-clock by Western Railway officers and staff. He further added that, Free drinking water and adequate toilet facilities are being provided at all major stations for the convenience of passengers.

At Bandra Terminus, specific measures have been implemented to handle the exceptionally high festive rush. During the period from 15th to 21st October 2025, approximately 70,000 passengers were able to travel to their destinations from Bandra Terminus. During this period to cater to passenger demand, 466 trips were run from Udhna/Surat, 468 from Bandra Terminus, 254 from Mumbai Central and 72 from Valsad.

Gupta further said that to ensure smooth crowd flow and passenger comfort, a temporary holding area of 350 square metres with a capacity of 450 passengers and a permanent holding area of 702 square metres with a capacity of 1,000 passengers have been created at Bandra Terminus. Both holding areas are equipped with adequate lighting, fans and a public announcement system to keep passengers informed about train movements. A total of 70 licensed Sahayaks are deployed daily in two shifts at Bandra Terminus to assist passengers. Adequate numbers of ticket-checking staff are also deployed round-the-clock at all entry and exit points, and additional ticket counters have been opened to manage the increased passenger load.

To prevent overcrowding, the sale of platform tickets has been temporarily restricted at Bandra Terminus, Vapi and Surat stations of Mumbai Central Division. Western Railway has also issued strict instructions to avoid stacking parcels on platforms to enhance passenger safety and ease of movement.

Vivek Kumar Gupta, General Manager, Western Railway, stated that continuous monitoring and coordinated efforts are being ensured across all divisions to manage the heavy festive rush effectively. He urged passengers to plan their journeys in advance, use mobile ticketing facilities and cooperate with railway staff for safe and hassle-free travel.

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