-The Visakhapatnam – Secunderabad Vande Bharat Express couldn’t be operated today i.e., 17th August 2023 due to Technical Snag
-SCR organised Special Train with conventional coaches for meeting the demand of Secunderabad – Visakhapatnam Vande Bharat Express passengers.
-Near 100% Occupancy Recorded in Train No. 20834 Secunderabad – Visakhapatnam.
An exceptional situation prevailed due to a technical snag in Visakhapatnam – Secunderabad Vande Bharat Express which led to operational exigency and inability in running the regular train service. South Central Railway immediately swung into action and undertook swift measures to replace Vande Bharat rake with conventional rake within short time period today i.e., 17th August, 2023, so as to ensure that the travel demand of the rail passengers is met.
The decision was taken by Railway administration to run the scheduled train service with conventional AC coaches to accommodate all the passengers who had made their reservation by the Vande Bharat Express. The passengers who made reservations by Train no. 20834 (Secunderabad to Visakhapatnam) Vande Bharat Express were promptly informed about the change in train formation through text messages.
These passengers were given a choice of either boarding the special train with normal fare (thereby getting refund of difference in fare) or to cancel their tickets (thereby getting 100% refund). Almost all the passengers opted to travel by the Special Train, with only 24 passengers opting to cancel their tickets.
The AC Special Train started at the regular scheduled time of Vande Bharat Train i.e., at 15: 00 hrs, with same stoppages as that of Vande Bharat Express. To facilitate the passengers, special help desks were arranged at the stopping stations. Regular announcements were made for the information of passengers. Additional staff were deployed at the stations to guide the passengers.
On train, additional Ticket Checking Staff as well as Security Staff were deployed for assisting the passengers. Catering arrangements, on par with Vande Bharat Train services were made available to all the passengers. Adequate Catering Personnel were deployed to take care of the passenger requirements. In addition, an Officer was deployed to supervise overall arrangements on the special train.
Shri Arun Kumar Jain, General Manager, South Central Railway appreciated the team of Railways for taking prompt action to ensure the comfort of passengers by arranging special trains with very short notice period to meet their travel needs.
