Chaos at Thane station as ‘staff special’ local keeps doors locked amid train delays

A screengrab of the incident at Thane railway station when railway staff allegedly kept the doors of an employee special local train shut, sparking chaos. (Image enhanced using AI)

Chaos erupted at Thane railway station on Monday evening after railway staff allegedly kept the doors of an ’employee special’ local train shut, preventing commuters from boarding amid widespread disruption to Central Railway’s (CR) suburban services. The Railways is identifying the employees involved and considering opening the staff special train to all commuters.

The incident occurred on a day when technical snags in the signal system and overhead equipment disrupted rail services for several hours, leaving commuters stranded amid overcrowding and delays across the network. Thane station, which handles an average daily footfall of around six lakh commuters, was among the worst affected stations.

According to preliminary information, an ’employee special’ slow local train travelling towards Kalyan arrived at Thane around 4 pm after originating from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) in Mumbai. The doors of the passenger compartments, including those reserved for railway employees, were allegedly kept closed despite commuters waiting at the station seeking to board the train.

Audio-visual footage of the incident, which was circulated on social media, showed commuters pleading with railway staff to open the doors. The incident triggered questions over the conduct of railway employees at a time when regular commuters were struggling to reach their destinations.

Central Railway has taken cognisance of the incident and begun identifying the employees involved based on the audio and video footage. The zonal railway administration said the incident would be investigated and action would be taken against those found guilty in accordance with the rules.

Employee special local trains are dedicated to railway staff’s transportation. The particular train departs CSMT at 3.48 pm and halts at Byculla, Parel, and Matunga to pick up workshop employees en route to Kalyan.

Monday’s disruption left commuters facing prolonged delays, with journeys between Thane and Kalyan taking considerably longer than usual.