HYDERABAD, Dec 6: Passengers of up and down country trains experienced tremendous difficulties on Tuesday and Wednesday and virtually remained stranded in severe cold as rail operation remained suspended on down country track for around 16 hours after two empty wagons derailed near Meting railway station on Tuesday night.
Four railway officials were reportedly suspended by the Superintendent of Railways, Karachi Division.
Railway officials said that rail traffic on up and down country tracks was restored on Wednesday morning after 16 hours of hectic efforts following derailment of two empty wagons during shunting, causing blockade of down country track. The railway authorities allowed trains' operation through up country track alone.
A Hyderabad railway station official said that refund to passengers was announced by the railway authorities for the intending passengers. Since these trains arrived quite late passengers, including women and children, who opted for travelling despite late arrival of trains, had to face untold miseries in severe cold. The trains' arrival from Punjab and other parts of the country was delayed because of heavy fog in Punjab.
An official source said that up country trains of Tuesday night were cleared on Wednesday morning. Likewise, five down country trains were detained at Hyderabad and Kotri railway stations before their final destination to Karachi. A crane was managed from Karachi to clear the track.
The officials present at the office of chief controller of railways did not confirm closure of down country track as they insisted that trains were plying on both the tracks. Some officials of Hyderabad railway station also complained that officials sitting in chief controller's office in Karachi were not providing correct information so that the same could be passed on to inquisitive passengers for their journey. “We too are facing problems because we are not being guided properly by our officers present in chief controller's office", said one of the officials.
It was learnt that DS suspended guard and point man of goods trains for negligence while driver and fire man of the Quetta-bound Bolan mail were also placed under suspension. The engine of Bolan mail was derailed between Petaro and Unnarpur railway stations.
BAR POLLS: Allah Bachayo Soomro, advocate, was elected unopposed as general secretary of the High Court Bar Association, Hyderabad, on Wednesday.
The Bar elections are scheduled for December 16 when 350 members would cast their votes. Today was the last date for withdrawal of candidature. Two candidates , Rafiq Ahmed and Fazal Qadir Memon, had filed their nominations for the post of general secretary, but they withdrew. Now polling for the posts of president, vice president, joint secretary, library secretary and five members of managing committee would be held. December 14 is the last date for clearance of dues of the voters.
SPRAY MACHINES: Jamshoro district government on Tuesday handed over five mosquito spray machines to the EDO of health to distribute them one each among all the talukas and two for Kotri, the largest among all.
District Nazim Malik Asad Sikandar who presented the machines to EDO Health Ali Akbar Dahiri at a simple ceremony directed the EDO to meet with taluka nazims to chalk out a schedule for spraying in each union council.
He urged him to ensure that the chemical decimated mosquitoes in all the UCs. In each taluka, machines should be handed over to technical training supervisors who then should select trained people to operate them.
The nazim later inspected the office of EDO health and issued instructions that medicines should be made available at each taluka hospital and spurious drugs should be destroyed.
DCO Dr Mohammad Khawar Jamil, Naib District Nazim Abdul Hameed Buledi, Dr Khadim Qureshi, national programme officer and officials of the district government, doctors and paramedical staff also attended the ceremony.
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