Thiruvananthapuram Division ensured a safe, smooth, and incident-free Deepavali travel season through meticulous planning and coordinated execution.
This year, the Division implemented comprehensive crowd management measures across major stations, enabling the hassle-free movement of thousands of passengers during the peak festival week.
To meet the festive demand, Southern Railway operated 34 special trains during the deepavali festive week from major stations in the Division, benefitting over 45,000 reserved passengers. Between 1 October to 22 October a total of 1,35,032 passengers booked tickets in the 92 trips of special trains operated to and fro important stations in Thiruvananthapuram Division. In addition, 15 pairs of highly patronised trains were augmented, providing extra capacity on routes connecting major metros and northern destinations.
Round-the-clock vigilance and safety measures — including War Rooms, CCTV surveillance, and continuous RPF–GRP monitoring — ensured zero safety lapses and full control over passenger flow. The Ernakulam Junction station was identified with a dedicated holding area to manage any crowd build-up efficiently.
Enhanced passenger facilities, frequent and targeted announcements, and proactive staff support ensured a comfortable, convenient, and safe journey for all travellers.
To cater to the surge in passenger demand, Deepavali Special Trains were operated connecting Thiruvananthapuram, Kochuveli, Kollam, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Nagercoil, and Kanniyakumari with major destinations such as Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Patna, Santragach, Hubballi. These services significantly eased congestion in regular trains and ensured comfortable travel for passengers heading home for the festival. Highly patronised 15 pair trains were augmented to clear waiting listing tickets and ensure convenience of passengers.
Passenger Facilitation, Crowd Management and Station Arrangements
Proactive steps were taken at key stations including Thiruvananthapuram Central, Kochuveli, Kollam Junction, Kottayam, Ernakulam Junction, Aluva, Ernakulam Town, to manage passenger flow and maintain order:
Additional RPF, GRP, ticket checking staff, and station personnel were deployed for crowd regulation.
Special announcements guided passengers on train timings and platform changes.
Holding areas and queue systems were identified at Ernakulam to manage peak-hour crowds.
Extra booking counters and ATVMs were opened to facilitate faster ticketing and reduce queues at all major stations.
Help desks, information counters, and medical teams were made available at important stations to assist passengers. Cleanliness drives and intensified housekeeping ensured hygienic station premises.
War Rooms were functional with RPF and it was maintained round-the-clock surveillance with CCTV monitoring and patrolling, ensuring safe movement of passengers and preventing carriage of prohibited items such as firecrackers.
Smooth and Safe Operations
Shri Divyakant Chandrakar, Divisional Railway Manager, Thiruvananthapuram informed that the hassle free deepavali travel was concerted efforts of all the teams – Operating, Commercial, Mechanical, RPF, Medical and GRP that the train services in the division operated smoothly and punctually, with convenient journey for large number of passengers and no untoward incidents were reported during the festive period.