Passengers from Bhigwan and surrounding villages have asked the railway administration to restore express train halts at Bhigwan railway station, saying the continued suspension of services since the COVID-19 period is disrupting education, employment and local commerce. The demands were submitted during a Rail Jan Samvad programme held on Thursday and organised by the Solapur railway division.
Residents, students, daily commuters, gram panchayats, railway passenger associations and political representatives from Bhigwan, Diksal, Rajegaon, Takrawadi, Khanawate, Madanwadi and Swami Chincholi attended the programme. Railway public relations officer Kulkarni, the station manager and other officials were present and accepted written representations from the participants.
The residents sought the restoration of halts for the Hutatma Express, Chennai Mail and Siddheshwar Express, among other major trains that previously stopped at Bhigwan. They also asked the railway to introduce at least one regular train halt between 6 am and 9 am for passengers travelling towards Pune. The requested morning connectivity is intended to help school and college students, office workers and residents travelling to district headquarters and other urban centres for work and official tasks.
According to the concerns raised at the meeting, express train halts were available before the pandemic during both morning and evening periods. This allowed some residents to travel to Pune, Solapur and other cities for work and return home daily. With those halts no longer available, passengers say their travel options have narrowed and journeys have become more difficult.
The disruption has also affected businesses around the station, residents said. Auto-rickshaw drivers, food vendors and other small traders who depended on passenger movement have reported a decline in business. Villagers also said that the station’s daily economic activity has slowed since the train halts were discontinued, linking rail connectivity directly to the livelihoods of small service providers in the surrounding area.
Residents told railway officials that repeated representations and protests had not resulted in the restoration of the halts. They also expressed dissatisfaction with assurances made during election periods, alleging that commitments to restart services had not been followed by action. The issue now places attention on the coordination required between railway authorities and elected representatives from the Indapur, Baramati and Daund constituencies.
Railway public relations officer Kulkarni said the submissions would be forwarded to senior officials in the division. No restoration date or specific train-wise decision was announced at the public meeting, leaving passengers waiting for the railway administration’s response to the requests.
