ARA JUNCTION A TRESURE TROVE FOR RAILWAYS BUT PASSENGERS GET NOTHING

ARA JUNCTION A TRESURE TROVE FOR RAILWAYS BUT PASSENGERS GET NOTHING

5-JAN-ENG 11

RAJIV NAYAN AGRAWAL

ARA--------------------------Ara Junction has become a goldmine for the railways. It has earned record-breaking revenue in the current financial year. However, there is a lack of passenger facilities.

Ara Junction has left behind many major junctions in terms of earnings. Amidst the huge crowd of passengers, Ara Junction is proving to be nothing less than a revenue express for the railways. In the current financial year, Ara Junction has earned record-breaking revenue from ticket sales and has made its strong presence felt in the list of top stations in terms of revenue.

With the increasing number of passengers, Ara Junction has emerged as a major revenue center for the railways. In the list of top stations released by the Hajipur Railway Zone, Ara Junction has performed brilliantly, securing the eighth position in terms of revenue. From April to December in the current financial year, the railways have received revenue of Rs 115 crore 90 lakh from Ara Junction, which is significantly higher than the previous year.

According to the data, Ara Junction earned Rs 33 crore 34 lakh through UTS and Rs 81 crore 55 lakh through PRS. During the same period, more than 12 crore 76 lakh passengers traveled from here. The special thing is that Ara Junction has also surpassed Patliputra station in terms of revenue. However, despite such huge earnings, the situation at Ara Junction remains worrying in terms of passenger facilities. There are neither sufficient waiting rooms nor clean toilets.

Also, the low height of the platform poses a risk of accidents. The good news is that Ara Junction has been included in the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme, which is expected to lead to the expansion of passenger facilities in the future. In this regard, local resident Abhishek Dwivedi said that the revenue is fine, but there are no facilities at the station. There is no drinking water facility, the escalators are mostly out of order, but here, with the help of the GRP (Government Railway Police), chains and locks are put on bikes and they are impounded. When the DRM (Divisional Railway Manager) arrives, everything is cleaned up.