Surat: Western Railway (WR) achieved a new milestone on Sunday by operating 21 festive trains from Udhna Railway Station within a span of 12 hours, helping thousands of migrant workers travel from Surat to Bihar and Uttar Pradesh ahead of the festive season.

Officials said the operations were conducted between 5 am and 5 pm, and around 36,000 passengers traveled from Udhna by various trains, marking the highest single-day movement ever recorded by WR. This represents a 44% increase compared to the same day last year, when about 25,000 passengers traveled. The day before, October 18, over 22,800 passengers departed from Surat and Udhna stations.

Surat Deputy Commissioner of Police, Zone 2, Kannan Desai, said, “Law and order were strictly maintained at the passenger holding areas. We provided energy drinks, water bottles, food packets, fruits, and biscuits to passengers waiting for long hours. Despite the overcrowding, all passengers followed our instructions and queued properly at Udhna Railway Station.”

Officials added that on Monday, 12 regular, special, and unreserved trains departed from Udhna, continuing the rush of migrant workers returning home for the festival. The Railway Protection Force (RPF), Government Railway Police (GRP), and Surat city police jointly managed crowd control at busy platforms.

For this year’s 20-day festive period, 77 special trains have been scheduled from Udhna, up from 66 last year, to manage the heavy passenger rush. DeshGujarat