Is Travelling By Indian Railways Post Covid-19 Safe?

The Plan – Mumbai to Dhanachuli.

When I first came to terms with the fact that we would be travelling to our next destination Dhanachuli in Uttarakhand, also our first in 2021, by train, I was a little sceptical. Mind you, I love train journeys and I am the person who truly believes that each mode of transport has its own joys to savor but this time was different.

This time, weren’t we already crossing the pandemic? And while doing so, hadn’t we changed the way we think or plan about travels?

The journey in Indian railways was to be 1 day and 1 night long which meant spending considerable time without any appropriate social distancing or cleanliness measures.

Would train travel be safe or would we be putting ourselves at risk?

... was the biggest question on my mind. And the mind of my well wishers as well.

Catching a flight instead was definitely lucrative and I must admit at that time, it seemed a safer option but the biggest impediment was non availability of direct flight options from Mumbai to Dhanachuli. The nearest airport is Pantnagar which can be reached via Delhi or Dehradun.

We considered taking a flight to Delhi and then boarding a Shatabdi to the nearest Kathgodam station but met a roadblock while co-ordinating the timings of the connecting flight and train.

We considered taking a flight to Dehradun but the travel time on road further from Dehradhun to Dhanachuli is approximately 9 hours which was not something we were prepared to do. Plus it was an expensive option as well.

Booking the Railway Ticket!

After trying many permutations and combinations on how we can travel from Mumbai to Dhanachuli – the best option that we pinned our plans on was on the Indian Railways. After all, it was a direct train from Mumbai to Lal Kuan Junction reducing our further road travel to a mere 2 hours and though the total travel time would be more, the cost and the accompanying hassle was way too less in this case.

After much consideration and deliberation, we booked our ticket in train no. 09075 dated 21st January 2021 – yes, even with all the doubts we had in mind, and yes even with the risk factor involved - the desire to get out and explore was so strong that we did not let our reservations come in the way.

How was it like travelling in the Indian Railways post Covid-19?

Let me sum it all up in the beginning itself – 

Travelling in the Indian Railways post Covid-19 is as smooth as butter.

The only visible difference that I could make out was people were masked and blankets / bedding were not given to us in 3A coaches. Everything else - especially the magic of train travel was as it was. Or perhaps even more.

Oh what joy! to sit by the window and watch the world rush by – the changing landscapes, endlessly fascinating, living works of art, nature’s own museum; to catch a nap without a care in the world of what you want to ‘do’ next; to saying your hellos with fellow passengers as strangers and eventually graduating to saying your goodbyes as family – there was all this and more that by the time we reached Lal Kuan Junction, I was only glad and grateful for having taken the journey at all.

Important information and guidelines if you’re travelling by Indian Railways:

To make a passengers life safer, the Indian Railways has issued guidelines for people travelling by the railways.

Some of the things you can do is –

• Wear A MASK.
• Carry a hand sanitizer and other wipes.
• Maintain social distancing.
• Pack your own home cooked food.
• Avoid touching here and there.
• Be aware.
• Download Aarogya Setu app.

Do all of it, if you must but -

The last and the most important thing that I would like to add is enjoy your journey.

Take all the necessary precautions, to your best and according to your satisfaction – and go ahead and book your tickets - train travel in Indian Railways post the pandemic Covid 19 is absolutely safe.

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