Adivasi Sengel Abhiyan’s Bharat Bandh Halts Train Service on Tatanagar-Asansol Rail Route

A Bharat Bandh called by the Adivasi Sengel Abhiyan disrupts train services on the Tatanagar-Asansol route, leading to diversions and cancellations.

JAMSHEDPUR – The Adivasi Sengel Abhiyan’s call for a Bharat Bandh brought train services to a standstill on the Tatanagar-Asansol rail route on Thursday.

Meanwhile, trains continued to operate on the Howrah-Rourkela route.

Dozens of bandh supporters chanted slogans and blocked the line at Madhukunda station in West Bengal, bringing the operation of freight trains to a halt and causing distress among station and line duty railway staff.

Cancellations and Diverted Trains

In anticipation of a line blockage, the South Eastern Railway zone had already canceled 29 passenger trains.

RPF personnel, upon receiving information about the line blockage, arrived at the site and persuaded the bandh supporters to vacate the line.

Despite these efforts, the line remained blocked for more than half an hour.

Consequently, the Tatanagar to Danapur and Asansol Express and Tata Badampahar MEMU trains were canceled in both directions as secret information about line blockage was received at Bahalda Road station in Odisha during the bandh.

Due to the line blockage at Madhukunda, the Anand Vihar-Puri Nandan Kanan Express was diverted via Tatanagar.

Simultaneously, the Danapur-Tata Express Asansol and Asansol-Tata train returned from Adra station.

Road Blockages and Demonstrations

In addition to the rail disruption, supporters of the bandh also blocked the Tata-Hata road in Karandih on seven issues under the direction of the Central President of Adivasi Sengel Abhiyan and former MP, Salkhan Murmu.

This blockade was implemented from 9 am to around 11.30 am, during which hundreds of vehicles were stranded on both sides.

Among the seven issues raised by Sengel, demands included the implementation of the Nature Worshiping religion Sarna Dharma Code under Article 25 in 2023, the release of Marang Buru handed over to the Jains by Chief Minister Hemant Soren on January 5, 2023, providing Santhali with the status of Jharkhand’s first official language, ceasing attempts to include Kurmi in the ST list, restoring Abua Disom, Abua Raj in Jharkhand, awarding ST status to Jharkhandi tribals of Assam and Andaman, and conducting democratic and constitutional reforms in the tribal self-governance system.