| Increase in rail fare, non-availability of tickets add woes of pilgrims, tourists | | | Early Times Report
Jammu, June 26: As the Amarnath yatra is about to commence, rail fare increase and increase in air tickets are taking toll on pilgrims including Vaishno Devi pilgrims and tourists.
Non-availability of tickets in trains are adding to the woes of these pilgrims who wanted to reach Jammu earliest. These pilgrims and tourists are disappointed with the means of transport as all the trains from and for Jammu are full for the next two months and the Air fares are about 50 percent higher than the average rates.
Despite of having daily traffic of about 30 trains to and fro at Jammu Tawi railway station, pilgrims fail to get a confirmed ticket these days. Amarnath Sharma, a Pilgrim from Uttar Pradesh said, "We didn't get the train ticket for Jammu even in Tatkal quota, so we decided to come by air. The waiting list from Delhi to Jammu is more than 100." A railway official said, "All trains from and for Jammu Tawi are fully packed,""To control the heavy rush and accommodate all the passengers and pilgrims, we have started eight special trains," he added. However, many of the passengers are still not getting a confirm ticket. Meanwhile, taking advantage of the heavy rush during vacations, All the Airlines have increased Airfare for Jammu. The average rate of the airfare for Jammu-Srinagar was around Rs. 4000 but for the month of June and July the fare in not less than Rs. 7800 in any flight. As far as the flights from Delhi to Srinagar are concerned, the cheapest flight from Delhi to Srinagar is around Rs. 9900, which more than double. "I usually get ticket for Srinagar within Rs.4500, but I was shocked when I checked the rates, there was no ticket below Rs. 8600," said Ali Muhammad, a busniessman. Gautam Sharma, a ticket agent said, "We always face the problem of availability and fare rise in this season, but this time the rates have been increased by more than 50 percent." "We always suggest our regular customers to book their ticket a monthbefore travelling in summer vacations to get availability in trains and better fares in flights," he added. |
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