Several trains running between Mumbai and Pune were delayed by about 7 hours after a landslide triggered by heavy rain blocked the tracks. The landslide was reported in the Nagnath and Palasdhari section on the Mumbai-Pune line of the Central Railway on Thursday night.
The landslide disrupted the running of trains in Lonavala-Karjat Ghat section, which is also known as Southeast Ghat section. The railway officials have confirmed that the boulders were removed by 8:15 am on Friday, after which the train movement on the Up line has been restored and all the three lines are now open.
According to a Central Railway official, the boulders fell at the approach section of tunnel number 26. Motilal Lobhi, who was a patrolman on duty there, detected what had happened and immediately stopped a banker locomotive engine, which was moving closer towards the landslide impacted site. He then alerted all the officials.
Soon after, the officials started work towards restoration of the Up line. A relief train carrying the necessary equipment for restoration, like stone breakers and safety tools, was sent. In this rainy season, this is the first major landslide to have happened in the area.
“Since the Up line was blocked, trains had to be stopped. Trains coming from Pune had to be stopped near Lonavala and those coming from the Mumbai side had to be stopped near Karjat. The trains were then made to pass slowly via the middle line. The restoration work was completed at around 8.15am and the UP line has now been opened for the traffic,” the railway official said.
The fallen boulders are reported to be about 1-2 meters long in size.
As only two lines were open, a few Down trains (trains going towards Pune from Mumbai) were also delayed by 30 minutes to an hour while the restoration work was being carried out. Officials at the Pune Rail Division said that two trains coming from Mumbai got delayed by over 70 minutes.
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