IRCTC's private fleet of Lucknow-Delhi Tejas trains suspended amid COVID rise

In wake of the exponential rise of COVID-19 in Lucknow and Delhi, the Railway authorities have announced that the services of IRCTC's private Tejas fleet will be suspended here. As per orders, Train no. 82501/ 82502 Lucknow- New Delhi- Lucknow Tejas train will remain cancelled from April 9, 2021, till further advice. However, in the coming days, special trains may also run from highly affected states like Maharashtra.

COVID scare curbs movement between Lucknow & Delhi, once again

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The COVID-19 rise has yet again curbed movement of the Tejas trains between Lucknow and Delhi. While other railway services will run as scheduled, the authorities announced that the corporate-luxury Tejas trains will remain suspended until further notice. Earlier, the trains had shut down all services with the enforcement of the nationwide lockdown last year.

It was only in February this year that Tejas Express trains returned to tracks after a 10-month hiatus due to increased demands. While it usually runs for 4 days a week, from March 25 to April 5, the trains were running as daily services to meet with the festive rush which eased travel and mobility for many. However, once again, the services have been restricted to curtail the infection rise in Lucknow, Delhi and other train stops.

On Wednesday, Delhi reported 5506 new infections while Lucknow's count soared to 1346 positive infections, its highest-ever daily spike since the outbreak of the virus. Therefore travel curbs have now been introduced to break the chain of infection here due to increased travel and contact.