Kolkata: Train services on the South Eastern Railway (SER) were severely disrupted on Saturday as members of the Kurmi community staged rail blockades at multiple points across the network.
The agitation, under the banner of the Adivasi Kurmi Samaj (AKS), demanding Scheduled Tribe (ST) status for the Kurmi community and recognition of the Kurmali language in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, also impacted several Eastern Railway (ER) services that pass through SER territory.
According to SER officials, by 7 pm at least 69 trains had been affected. Of these, 30 services, including the Ranchi–Patna Vande Bharat Express, Ranchi–Dumka Express, Hatia–Kharagpur Express, and Barbil–Howrah Janshatabdi Express, were cancelled.
Another nine long-distance trains, such as the Silghat–Tambaram Express, CSMT Mumbai–Howrah Express, and LTT Mumbai–Shalimar Express, were diverted via alternative routes.
At least 21 services, including the Kharagpur–Ranchi Express, Tatanagar–Patna Vande Bharat Express, Howrah–Rourkela Vande Bharat Express, and Ranchi–Varanasi Vande Bharat Express, were short-terminated at stations like Purulia, Adra, Muri, Chakulia, and Kharagpur.
A further nine trains, including the Ahmedabad–Howrah Express, Howrah–Pune Duronto, and Anand Vihar–Puri Express, were controlled at stations such as Rourkela, Ghatshila, and Purulia.
The agitation began early in the morning, with protesters blocking tracks at Bhanjpur station in Kharagpur division between 5.02 am and 5.35 am. Though blockades were later withdrawn from Bhanjpur, Sonua, Kotshila, and Hesalong, they continued at several stretches, including the Sini–Gamharia and Sini–Kandra sections of Chakradharpur division, the Ghatsila and Rakhamines–Galudih sections of Kharagpur division, and multiple points in Ranchi division such as Muri Yard, Latemda–Jhimri, and Namkum–Tatisilwai. Agitation at certain stations under the Dhanbad division of East Central Railway also led to train controls within SER jurisdiction.