Date:21/07/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/21/stories/2008072153440300.htm

Other States - Orissa

Rail services disrupted

Staff Reporter

Photo: Lingaraj Panda

Caught unawares: Several of the tourists remain stranded at the railway station in Berhampur on Sunday . —

BERHAMPUR: A six-hour long rail blockade at Khallikote Station in Ganjam district disrupted rail services between Bhubaneswar and Vizag on Sunday morning.

A group of around 1,200 agitators squatted on the railway tracks near the Khallikote railway station from 6 a.m. They continued their blockade till noon. The agitators were demanding stoppages of mails and express trains at the station. The agitators were gathered under the banner of ‘Khallikote Rail Yatri Surakshya Samity’. Due to this rail blockade several passenger trains had to be detained at Khurda road, Balugaon, Berhampur and Palasa. It caused much problem for the travellers in the trains as well as the ones waiting for trains at stations.

The three DMUs that connect Palasa and Berhampur with Bhubaneswar were stranded at Berhampur station. The Tirupati-Puri express was also detained here. The Visakha and Prashanti expresses were detained at Khurda road.

Police officials and railway authorities rushed to Khallikote but they could not persuade the agitators to end their blockade before noon. Ganjam ASP S.D. Singh, GRPF DSP Pratap Mohanty, in charge of Berhampur GRPF station Tarini Patra and railway officials held discussions with the agitators for long.

The leaders of the agitators, Gangadhar Tripathy and Sriharsha Rath threatened to hold a 12-hour-long rail blockade if their demands were not fulfilled even after this six hour blockade.