The irony of protesting train delays by holding up services was not lost on these commuters. But they saw no other way out of their hopelessness. Peeved by repeated delays, commuters at the Badlapur railway station in Thane district blocked tracks in protest, disrupting Central Railway (CR) services for nearly five hours yesterday.
<img title="Commuters block a train at the Badlapur railway station to protest recurring delays in services. Pics/Mahendra Jagtap" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2016/aug/Train-delays-1.jpg" alt="Commuters block a train at the Badlapur railway station to protest recurring delays in services. Pics/Mahendra Jagtap" /> Commuters block a train at the Badlapur railway station to protest recurring delays in services. Pics/Mahendra Jagtap
The protest began after the Karjat-CST local was held up at a level-crossing gate signal for over 20 minutes early in the morning. Most of the protesters travel daily from Badlapur to Diva, and onwards to Roha, Kurla and CST.
<img title="Commuters wait for their trains at Churchgate as services were delayed owing to the fire" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2016/aug/Train-delays-2.jpg" alt="Commuters wait for their trains at Churchgate as services were delayed owing to the fire" /> Commuters wait for their trains at Churchgate as services were delayed owing to the fire
The enraged commuters got down onto the tracks and blocked the S-6 Karjat-CST train and the TS-1 Thane-Karjat local at 5.55 am. Their grouse was that services to the station often get delayed.
The impromptu rail roko, which went on till 11 am, held up services of CST-Karjat locals from both ends. Other locals ran late by 30 minutes. Seven long-distance trains were also delayed, while two others were diverted via the Karjat-Panvel-Diva sector.
The crowd dispersed only after the railway authorities assured them that there would be no more delays.
Commuters unite Shilpa Patkar (32), a manager with a private firm in Byculla, said she arrived at the Badlapur station on time for the 7.15 local. On spotting the crowd demanding timely train services, she joined the protest. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve been frustrated with train delays for the last six months. The divisional railway manager and railway police assured us that services will no longer be delayed,&rdquo; said Patkar, who skipped work to be a part of the agitation.
Niranjana Gaikwad (30), an employee of a private import/export firm in Chembur who boards the 7.52 am Badlapur-CST train every day, said delays usually cause crowding in trains departing from Badlapur. &ldquo;By the time we arrive at our offices, we are completely spent.&rdquo;
A case has been registered under the Railway Police Act against the protesters, said RK Singh, senior inspector, Badlapur RPF. The police are looking into CCTV camera footage to identify them.

Commuters of Badlapur station block tracks for 5 hours after a local is held up

Badlapur Agitation: Irked by train delays? Cause more delays

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Badlapur Agitation: Irked by train delays? Cause more delays

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