THOSE 36 PLUS HOURS - 667

 

SRIVAIKUNTAM STATION MASTER NEEDS TO BE                         APPRECIATED FOR HIS SERVICES         

                  SRIVAIKUNTAM RAILWAY STATION 

Train Number 20606 Chendur Express that started from Tiruchendur Railway Station was held up at the Srivaikuntam Station after the Ballasts that held the tracks were washed away during the unprecedented recent rains on the Srivaikuntam to Seydunganallur section of the Tiruchendur to Tirunelveli Section .

It must have been a real lifetime experience for the SRIVAIKUNTAM Station Master Jaffer Ali and a handful of Railway Staffers who had to keep at ease around 500 distressed passengers of a Train that had been stranded there for a few days due to incessant rains and floods since Sunday 17 th Night . They were left alone to face the fury of Nature and a hostile set of passengers who were becoming more difficult to handle with each passing hour .

The Train with around 800 Passengers onboard reached SRIVAIKUNTAM at 9.20 PM on Sunday . Jaffer Ali had received instructions that it was not safe to operate the Train beyond this point due to flooded tracks ahead . The Train Crew and the Station Master waited patiently to recieve orders from higher ups for the next course of action . They were finally informed after 2 hours that it was impossible to move the train any further .

The Loco Pilot Shaju soon  realized that the power to the Locomotive had been switched off and that the rains had begun to become even more furious with each passing Minute . The other crew members were The Train Manager S Sunder and Assistant Loco Pilot A Ayyasamy

 

                            SHAJU THE LOCO PILOT 

They pooled their resources and move nearly 300 people to a School Nearby in complete darkness and with the rains at its utmost fury . The remaining 500 could not be moved since the water level had increased substantially and it became unsafe to put even one step forward .

The Train was held up in complete darkness . The passengers began to get restless and wanted to know as to when the train would depart .

They managed the night , but by morning the question of feeding the children and the aged and infact everyone became an issue .

The local villagers were a great help and offered all the assistance that they could .

The passengers were angry and desperate.  Many genuinely understood the situation while many others let out their fury on the hapless RAILWAY STAFF on hand to face the ire of the passengers . 

On Monday , the NDRF , RAILWAYS AND STATE AGENCIES were trying to reach the Station but in vain . Though the rain reduced by Monday afternoon the level of water surrounding the station kept increasing and it became a challenge to keep the Train on the Track and prevent it from being washed away or moving it backwards .

They finally breathed a sigh of relief finally on Tuesday morning after a team of Railway Police Personnel reached them there by foot and explained to them as to how fortunate they were to be stranded in the Station . The NDRF reached next and the choppers dropped food, easing very much the anxiety of the passengers. 

After 36 Hours , Station Master Jaffer Ali was the last to leave the Station after ensuring that everything was in place and everyone had been taken care .

Jaffer Ali , Sunder and Shaju need to be commended for the services rendered by them . Afterall this is a once in a lifetime opportunity that has come their way of taking care of not 1 or 2 but 800 persons in dire need of moral support and help and Nature at it's most violent  FURY. 

 He and his co staffers surely deserves Recognition for the Services rendered by them . Won't be surprised if they are featured in the MAN KI BAATH this Month End by our PM .

      THE MAN OF THE MOMENT : JAFFER ALI SIR 

PS : THIS HAS ALL THE INGREDIENTS TO MAKE A SUCCESSFUL BLOCKBUSTER MOVIE .