Kolkata, Aug 4 — Eastern Railway (ER) has made elaborate arrangements to handle the unprecedented rush of pilgrims to Tarakeswar in Hooghly district of West Bengal.
Pilgrims (kanwarias) reach the temple town of Tarakeswar on Mondays during the month of Shravan for the Jalabhishek of Lord Shiva. Many walk the entire distance, while others travel by train to Tarakeswar station. The crowd swells when the pilgrims return after the rituals, with nearly all of them travelling back by train.
“There are lakhs of devotees every Monday. There is a huge rush this year. We are ensuring safe, seamless and comfortable travel for the devotees during the ongoing Shravani Mela at Tarakeswar. Senior officers conducted a comprehensive inspection at Tarakeswar station to review passenger amenities, crowd management, safety measures and overall operational preparedness,” a senior ER official said.
Officials recorded a footfall of nearly 1.60 lakh pilgrims on Monday, August 3, 2026. This was a 34.30 per cent increase over the previous year. Seoraphuli station, from where the tracks branch off towards Tarakeswar, also witnessed heavy footfall, handling 83,963 devotees on Monday – a 26.64 per cent increase over the previous year.
“To manage this massive surge of pilgrims effectively, ER has established three temporary holding areas at Tarakeswar station with a combined capacity of 5,920 passengers, fully equipped with adequate lighting, fans, drinking water and mobile charging facilities. Passenger convenience and smooth ticket issuance have been further enhanced through the deployment of 11 additional UTS counters, seven Mobile UTS counters and 10 automatic ticket vending machines (ATVMs) operated by dedicated facilitators,” the official said.
Fourteen pairs of additional EMU special trains, running between Howrah, Seoraphuli, Barddhaman and Tarakeswar, have also been introduced for this period.
During the first three peak weekends, a total of 246 special train trips were operated to clear the rush, supported by a dedicated EMU scratch rake stationed directly at Tarakeswar for immediate deployment during emergency surges.
With passenger safety in mind, Tarakeswar station is continuously monitored through 70 CCTV cameras, including 25 solar-powered cameras, which stream live feeds to a dedicated Railway Protection Force (RPF) “war room” for real-time surveillance.
Nearly 410 RPF personnel are deployed on every peak Sunday and Monday, operating in close coordination with the Government Railway Police (GRP), Civil Defence, Hooghly Police and the district administration to maintain smooth crowd regulation and safe movement.
Comprehensive medical arrangements, including ambulances, emergency medical teams and CPR-trained railway staff, remain stationed on-site throughout the Mela period.
“Apart from the pilgrims, we also have to ensure the smooth travel of regular commuters. Lakhs of people commute in this section daily. We have to ensure that they are not inconvenienced due to the additional rush. Surveillance is also being maintained at other stations to ensure that daily commuters are not harassed,” the official added.