With the number of positive cases for coronavirus or COVID-19 soaring to 49 in Maharashtra, the Western Railway (WR) has decided to suspend the AC local services in Mumbai from Friday.
The Western Railway PRO informed that the AC local trains will be replaced by non-AC suburban trains or regular local trains till March 31. This is being done to curb the crowd in Mumbai’s local trains amid the coronavirus outbreak in Maharashtra.
Maharashtra has become the worst-hit state in the country with 49 active cases of the coronavirus and one casualty. A 64-year-old man died at Kasturba Hospital which is the only infectious disease hospital in Mumbai.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday urged the people of the state to not step out of their houses unnecessarily.
While addressing the public through Live stream in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, CM Thackeray urged the citizens across Maharashtra to support the government’s initiative and instructions.
“This is a war and we can’t win a war with panic. The battle against the coronavirus outbreak has begun. Everyone on the frontline is fighting this. We all have to take precautionary measures and avoid unnecessary travelling. People should not step out of their homes,” CM Uddhav Thackeray said.
The local train service is the lifeline of Mumbai which ferry more than eight million passengers from Thane, Palghar, Raigad districts. In order to curb the crowd, the Central Railway has increased its platform ticket price from ₹10 to ₹50 in all the major railway stations.
Earlier, the Maharashtra cabinet had decided to not suspend the local train services but said that non-essential travels will lead to the shut down of Mumbai’s lifeline.
Maharashtra Public Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Thursday reiterated that currently the state was in stage 2 of the coronavirus outbreak and steps were being taken to ensure that it doesn’t reach stage 3.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is going to address the nation at 8:00 PM tonight and will possibly speak on the coronavirus pandemic.
Coronavirus Pandemic: Now You Can't Stand And Travel In MSRTC Or BEST Buses
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