Before-and-after photos show how Indian Railways has come to halt amid Coronavirus lockdown
Before-and-after photos show how Indian Railways has come to halt amid Coronavirus lockdown
Indian Railways - India's colossal passenger railway system --also known as India's lifeline- has come to a halt as the country took emergency lockdown measures to keep the coronavirus pandemic from spreading. We bring you before-and-after photos that show how Indian Railways have come to halt amid Coronavirus lockdown
Edited by: India TV News DeskNew DelhiPublished : Mar 25, 2020 13:18 IST, Updated : Mar 25, 2020 13:53 IST
Coronavirus outbreak: Trains are parked at New Delhi railway station as the country announced complete lockdown to contain the spread of COVID-19.
Indian Railways — India's colossal passenger railway system --also known as India's lifeline- has come to a halt as the country took emergency lockdown measures to keep the coronavirus pandemic from spreading. The railway system is often described as India's lifeline, transporting 23 million people across the vast subcontinent each day, some 8.4 billion passengers each year.
India’s rail network, the world’s fourth-largest, operates more than 12,100 trains carrying passengers and cargo along 67,415 kilometres (41,890 miles) of the track. With more than 1.2 million employees, it is the country’s largest employer. The lifeline was cut last Sunday, leaving hundreds of people stranded at railway stations, hoping to be carried onward by buses or taxis that appeared unlikely to arrive. The goods train will, however, continue to run to maintain essential supplies. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a 21-day complete lockdown. Indian Railways also announced that the services would remain suspended during the lockdown. We bring you before-and-after coronavirus lockdown photos of India's railway system.
Trains stand parked at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus after the country halted its railway network in Mumbai, India, Tuesday, March 24, 2020.
In this Monday, March 23, 2020, file photo, railway workers wearing masks push a handcart at Lokmanya Tilak Terminus in Mumbai, India. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
In this Monday, March 23, 2020, file photo, a homeless woman sleeps on a deserted platform of Lokmanya Tilak train terminus in Mumbai, India. India's colossal passenger railway system has come to a halt as officials take emergency measures to keep the coronavirus pandemic from spreading in the country of 1.3 billion
In this Wednesday, July 11, 2012, file photo, Indian commuters wait for trains at the Churchgate railway station in Mumbai, India. India's colossal passenger railway system has come to a halt Sunday, March 22, 2020, as officials take emergency measures to keep the coronavirus pandemic from spreading in the country of 1.3 billion. The railway system is often described as India's lifeline, transporting 23 million people across the vast subcontinent each day, some 8.4 billion passengers each year. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade, File)
In this Monday, March 23, 2020, photo, a passenger walks past railway tracks at the deserted New Delhi Railway station during a lockdown amid concerns over the spread of Coronavirus, in New Delhi, India, Monday. India's colossal passenger railway system has come to a halt as officials take emergency measures to keep the coronavirus pandemic from spreading in the country of 1.3 billion. The railway system is often described as India's lifeline, transporting 23 million people across the vast subcontinent each day, some 8.4 billion passengers each year. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
In this Monday, March 23, 2020, file photo, passengers wearing masks look out from a train in Jammu, India.
In this Nov. 16, 2012, file photo, Indians look out from an overcrowded train to travel home for the Chhath Puja festival dedicated to the Sun God, at a railway station in New Delhi, India, Friday. India's colossal passenger railway system has come to a halt Sunday, March 22, 2020, as officials take emergency measures to keep the coronavirus pandemic from spreading in the country of 1.3 billion. The railway system is often described as India's lifeline, transporting 23 million people across the vast subcontinent each day, some 8.4 billion passengers each year. (AP Photo/Kevin Frayer)
In this Friday, Nov. 16, 2012, file photo, Indians hang out from an overcrowded train to travel home for the Chhath Puja festival dedicated to the Sun God, at a railway station in New Delhi, India. India's colossal passenger railway system has come to a halt Sunday, March 22, 2020, as officials take emergency measures to keep the coronavirus pandemic from spreading in the country of 1.3 billion. The railway system is often described as India's lifeline, transporting 23 million people across the vast subcontinent each day, some 8.4 billion passengers each year. (AP Photo/Kevin Frayer, File)
FILE - In this Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2012, file photo, Indian Hindu devotees sit on the roof of a train as they leave after attending Shivratri festival fair at Bhavnath temple in Junagadh, 327 kilometers (204 miles) from Ahmadabad, India. India's colossal passenger railway system has come to a halt Sunday, March 22, 2020, as officials take emergency measures to keep the coronavirus pandemic from spreading in the country of 1.3 billion. The railway system is often described as India's lifeline, transporting 23 million people across the vast subcontinent each day, some 8.4 billion passengers each year. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki, File)
In this Monday, March 23, 2020, file photo, an Indian railways employee sits at a coronavirus help desk at the deserted New Delhi Railway station during a lockdown amid concerns over the spread of Coronavirus, in New Delhi, India.
FILE - In this Monday, Oct. 31, 2011, file photo, Indian passengers travel in an overcrowded train at the New Delhi railway station, in New Delhi, India. India's colossal passenger railway system has come to a halt Sunday, March 22, 2020, as officials take emergency measures to keep the coronavirus pandemic from spreading in the country of 1.3 billion. The railway system is often described as India's lifeline, transporting 23 million people across the vast subcontinent each day, some 8.4 billion passengers each year. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File)
In this Tuesday, March 24, 2020, file photo, railway officials walk through a deserted railway station in Prayagraj, India. India's colossal passenger railway system has come to a halt as officials take emergency measures to keep the coronavirus pandemic from spreading in the country of 1.3 billion.
This combination photo made of two images shows a crowd on a normal day at Church Gate railway station on Feb. 11, 2013, left, and the same station seen deserted on Sunday, March 22, 2020 in Mumbai, India. As India expanded its virus-containment measures and halted its train network, the country's lifeblood, the federal government warned Monday, March 23, 2020, of strict legal action for those who flout the rules. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms. For some it can cause more severe illness. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
FILE - In this Feb. 11, 2013, file photo, Indian commuters get off trains at the Church Gate railway station in Mumbai, India. India's colossal passenger railway system has come to a halt Sunday, March 22, 2020, as officials take emergency measures to keep the coronavirus pandemic from spreading in the country of 1.3 billion. The railway system is often described as India's lifeline, transporting 23 million people across the vast subcontinent each day, some 8.4 billion passengers each year. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool, File)
The New Delhi Railway Station — usually populated 24 hours a day with railway staff, shops selling snacks and newspapers, passengers crammed into waiting rooms and indigent people sleeping on the platform — was barren. Also Read: What stays closed during coronavirus lockdown
As state governments tightened restrictions on movement, migrant workers hauling backpacks swarmed overcrowded trains across many Indian cities, an exodus among panic-stricken day laborers that sparked fears the virus could spread to the countryside. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday evening announced a nationwide “total lockdown” for 21 days starting Wednesday, ordering one-fifth of the world's population to stay in place. Also Read: What stays open during 21-day coronavirus lockdown
India at the time of writing of this report has 562 confirmed positive cases of COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus, and at least nine deaths.
From India's first documented case of infection, it took 50 days for the total caseload to cross 200. In the past five days, the number of cases has crossed 500.
