Indian Railways issued a comprehensive passenger travel advisory after recording more than 1.17 lakh advance reservations aboard special trains scheduled for the annual Ganesh festival.
Central Railway and Western Railway mobilized dozens of additional festival special services connecting major transit hubs in Mumbai, Thane, and Pune with the Konkan region and western Maharashtra to accommodate the seasonal surge. Commercial railway officials noted that reservations across popular Konkan routes filled rapidly within minutes of opening. In response to the heavy passenger volume, railway administrations augmented train compositions with extra unreserved and sleeper coaches across key long-distance trains.
The advisory urged commuters to verify their reservation status prior to arriving at terminals, arrive early to clear security checks, and avoid traveling on footboards or roofs of carriages. Heavy security deployments from the Railway Protection Force and Government Railway Police were positioned at major stations, including CSMT, Dadar, and Panvel, to oversee crowd management and platform access.
Station directors established temporary passenger holding areas and medical assistance booths at major originating junctions to ensure orderly boarding throughout the high-demand festival period.
To prevent overcrowding on platforms, Central Railway introduced designated holding zones, additional passenger foot overbridges, and automated ticket scanning barriers at suburban terminals. Commercial inspectors were deputed along Konkan railway routes to conduct ticket checks and prevent unauthorized travel, while round-the-clock emergency medical booths were stationed at critical junctions.
Created by Ayen Stabel.
Stabel is AI and can make mistakes.
Sources:
https://indianexpress.com/article/india/ganpati-special-trains-2026-1-17-lakh-passengers-booked-railways-advisory-10857309/