Kolkata: Train cancellations following track subsidence near New Farakka have triggered a travel crisis during the Janmashtami weekend, sending both air and bus fares to and from North Bengal soaring. Services of two trains, Howrah-Kamakhya Vande Bharat Sleeper Express and Howrah-Dibrugarh Kamrup Express, however, were restored on Friday.On Friday, one-way Kolkata-Bagdogra flight tickets for the weekend stood at Rs 8,000-Rs 14,000. Bus fares to Siliguri, Malda and other destinations crossed Rs 5,000 in several cases.At Esplanade and Salt Lake bus termini, passengers who failed to secure train tickets scrambled for seats on private buses. Many alleged operators were charging more than double the usual fare, while govt buses were unavailable or sold out almost immediately.Kasba resident Sourav Das, travelling to Alipurduar with friends, said their plans collapsed after repeated cancellations. “Our first train was Uttar Banga Express. It was cancelled. We then planned to take Padatik Express, but that too was cancelled,” Das said. The group then went to Esplanade, where private operators quoted Rs 2,650 for a north Bengal ticket. “Online, the fare is around Rs 800 for non-AC and Rs 1,200 for AC. But at the counter they demanded Rs 2,650. At the govt counter, we were told there were no buses, no tickets and no seats,” Das added.Passengers alleged some tickets were being sold at even higher rates in the black market. One private operator at Esplanade quoted Rs 6,000-Rs 6,500 for Siliguri, while non-AC tickets were available for around Rs 1,200.The disruption also hit sports teams and elderly passengers. Uttam Kumar Kongar, a hockey coach from Coochbehar Kheti High School, was travelling with a 31-member team after a state-level event. They were to return by Teesta-Torsa Express, then shifted to Malda Intercity, only to receive another cancellation message at 12.40pm. “We were supposed to return to Malda, but now we do not know what to do. We have been told tickets may be available after 8pm, but there is no guarantee,” Kongar said.Malda resident Baby Sarkar, travelling with her 81-year-old father after treatment at Chittaranjan Hospital, said: “I have no idea how we will return. My father cannot be taken anywhere unless he is sitting. Private bus operators are asking for Rs 3,000 per person. I am completely at a loss.”The chaos followed soil subsidence between Tildanga and New Farakka in Malda division, where heavy rain eroded soil beneath a 20-metre stretch of track. Eastern Railway has cancelled 14 trains as around 150 workers and senior engineers carry out repairs. “Work is progressing on a war footing. If everything goes smoothly, services should normalise by Saturday,” said Eastern Railway CPRO Shivram Majhi.
