Residents displeased with the new route of reintroduced Radhikapur–Anand Vihar train

Raiganj: After a hiatus of nearly four years, the Railway authorities have finally decided to reintroduce the Radhikapur-Anand Vihar Express with a revised route. The weekly train is set to be virtually inaugurated on Wednesday by Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw from Kolkata. However, the new route has drawn widespread dissatisfaction from residents, as it is expected to take significantly longer to reach its destination, Anand Vihar.

According to the revised schedule, the train will now bypass key stops like Patna, Mughal Sarai, Allahabad and Kanpur. It will depart from Radhikapur at 10:30 am every Tuesday and reach Anand Vihar Terminal in Delhi at 6:50 pm on Wednesday, taking approximately 32 hours. On its return, the train will leave Anand Vihar at 11:45 pm on Sunday and arrive in Radhikapur at 7:00 am on Tuesday.

Previously, a link train of the Simanchal Express would run daily between Radhikapur and Anand Vihar, covering the journey in about 25 hours. However, this service was suspended indefinitely during the COVID-19 pandemic. The suspension of the train caused significant hardship for residents of North Dinajpur district, who rely on it for education, trade, healthcare and work opportunities in Delhi.

The West Dinajpur Chamber of Commerce and the Raiganj Merchants Association had launched protests, urging authorities to restore the service. They also submitted a memorandum to local BJP MP Kartic Paul and railway officials. The decision to reintroduce the train follows these efforts.

Despite this, residents remain unhappy with the new arrangement. Ranjit Das, a resident of Raiganj, lamented: “Previously, the Radhikapur-Anand Vihar link Simanchal Express would run every day and pass through key locations like Patna and Kanpur. This new weekly train, with its longer route, is of no use to us.”

Shankar Kundu, general secretary of the West Dinajpur Chamber of Commerce, echoed these concerns, stating: “The new route will take about 32 hours, while the previous train completed the journey in around 25 hours. We have demanded that the railway authorities restore the original route via Patna, Mughal Sarai, Allahabad and Kanpur. If the journey time isn’t reduced to 25 hours, this train service will not be of much help to us.”