Mumbai, 24 July 2010: Heavy rain over Wednesday and Thursday caused severe disruptions in the Konkan. Traffic on stretches of the Konkan Railway, the Mumbai-Goa Highway and other a rterial roads was blocked due to landslides. The Konkan Railway has cancelled seven trains and terminated a short-route train following disruption in traffic due to heavy downpour along the route, particularly at Nivsar Station, which received more than 21 cm rainfall.
The heavy downpour has also resulted in poor visibility for the Loco-Pilots in this Section, restricting the speed of trains to 40 Kmph wherever required.
As a result, the Konkan Railway Corporation(KRC) had terminated Diva-Sawantwadi Passenger Train between Diva-Ratnagiri. It will also be cancelled between Ratnagiri and Sawantwadi-Ratnagiri on 24 and 25 July as well.
According to the reports, the KRC has cancelled the following trains on 24 and 25 July 2010:
01. KR8/KR7 Madgaon-Sawantwadi Passenger Train
02. 2133 Dn. CSTM-Karwar Express
03. 2134 Up. Karwar-CSTM Express
04. 2051 Dn. CSTM-Madgaon Jan Shatabdi Express
05. 2052 Up Madgaon-CSTM Jan Shatabdi Express
06. 2619 Dn LT(T)-Mangalore Matsyagandha Express
07. 2620 Up Mangalore LT(T) Matsyagandha Express
It is not sure when the regular train service on the Konkan railway will resume. The flooding of the railway tracks with the fear of landslides might not only delay the running of the trains but also the resumption of regular service on this most vulnerable route especially during the monsoon season when the rain is quite incessant.