Agartala:Chaos erupted at Jirani Railway Station on Monday morning after scores of passengers were left stranded when Train No. 75679, operating on the Agartala–Karimganj route, proved too overcrowded to accommodate any additional boarders. Frustrated commuters subsequently launched a rail blockade that continued for over an hour, causing significant disruption to train services in the region.
The passenger train departed from Agartala’s Badarghat Station at 7:20 AM, where an unusually large crowd had already gathered. The situation worsened at Jogendranagar Station, where several passengers were unable to board due to the lack of available space inside the coaches. By the time the train reached Jirani Station, conditions had become critical, with the compartments packed well beyond their capacity.
Seeing no room to board, desperate passengers at Jirani took matters into their own hands and sat on the railway tracks, bringing train movement in the area to a complete standstill. The blockade lasted for more than one hour, during which railway authorities scrambled to manage the situation.
Local commuters expressed their anger over what they described as a persistent failure by railway authorities to provide adequate coaches on this route. “We have jobs to reach, appointments to keep — we cannot simply be left behind every single day,” said one agitated passenger at the station.
The Agartala–Karimganj route serves thousands of daily commuters, including students, office-goers and traders. Passengers have long complained that the number of coaches assigned to Train No. 75679 is grossly inadequate for the volume of travellers.
Railway officials could not be immediately reached for comment. However, commuters are demanding that authorities urgently increase the number of coaches on this route to prevent such incidents from recurring in the future.