After months of restricted access, Mumbai opened its local train network to all on August 15 – but with a condition. Travellers had to be f...
After months of restricted access, Mumbai opened its local train network to all on August 15 – but with a condition. Travellers had to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19.
Long queues snaked outside railway stations as counters opened on August 12 for commuters to get e-passes after getting their vaccine certificates verified. But within three days, the queues had reduced to a trickle.
At Andheri station on Monday, Nazim Khan, the municipal official appointed to verify the certificates, sat relaxed behind the counter. There were few takers for the passes. On Tuesday, the counter at Bandra station looked even more deserted – only 130 people had shown up until late afternoon to get their certificate verified.
Last year, after the pandemic struck and a nationwide lockdown came into place, Mumbai locals come to a grinding halt. Three months later, they gradually resumed service, but only for essential workers like government employees, health workers, police and banking staff. The daily footfall on the trains drastically dropped from the pre-pandemic level of 70-80 lakh commuters to about 35 lakh.
This number is unlikely to go up soon, given the mandatory vaccination rule for ordinary commuters – essential workers can still travel unvaccinated. Across Mumbai, only 1.65 lakh railway passes...
