N-E Railway gives train Nazia took to Varanasi from Mau a clear path after brother tweets about delay because of foggy conditions
The North-Eastern Railway stopped all its other service on the Mau-Varanasi stretch in eastern Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday morning to ensure that a 26-year-old woman reached her examination hall in time.
The railway’s proactive approach – which is being hailed as the spirit of public service that must imbue its every action – was triggered by a tweet by the woman’s brother to Railway Seva, the Indian Railway’s grievances cell.
Remarkably, the Varanasi division of North-Eastern Railway did not flout a single service rule while giving the train the right of the way. The train took 45 minutes less than the over three hours it takes to cover the distance between Mau and Varanasi, giving the woman just enough time to make a dash for her examination centre.
Nazia Tabassum, resident of Ghazipur in UP, was scheduled to appear for her basic teacher certificate (BTC) exam in Varanasi at noon on Wednesday. She and one of her younger brothers had a ticket for the Chhapra-Varanasi Intercity Special. The train, as per the time-table, arrives at Mau at 6.25 am and reaches Varanasi by 9.45 am. That would have given Nazia a cushion of close to two hours to reach her examination centre at Vallabh Vidyapeeth Balika Inter College and, may be, one last revision.

But, then, we all know that old saying about well-laid plans.
The train on Wednesday was running late by two-and-half hours because of dense fog. There was no way Nazia would have made it to the exam. That is when her brother Anwar Jamal, who was at home, tweeted requesting railway’s intervention in making sure his sister did not miss the examination. The tweet did the trick — the entire Varanasi division swung into action to make sure all other trains on the single-track Mau-Varanasi stretch gave way to the train Nazia was riding.
The train’s driver and guard were informed about the “emergency”. All traffic controllers were asked to keep the line clear. The train had four scheduled halts between Mau and Varanasi. It took all its scheduled halts. But station managers of all other stations were told to put other trains on loop lines so that Chhapra-Varanasi train was not delayed any further.
The train arrived at Mau at 9.18 am. If the train had taken its usual time to cover the distance to its destination, it would have reached Varanasi way past noon. But because a network of railway officials and technical staff cleared it path, the train reached Varanasi at little past 11, managing to shave off 45 minutes from the time it usually takes to cover the 90 km between Mau and Varanasi.
Public Relation Officer, Varanasi Division of North-Eastern Railways, Ashok Kumar said the railways was happy to be of help to Nazia. “The student’s problem was resolved as soon as the information was received. Keeping in mind all rules and regulations, the train Nazia was riding was provided a clear line to make sure she made it to the examination hall in time,” he said.
At the time of writing this story, Nazia was back home from Varanasi. She sent us a video profusely thanking the railways. Her brother Anwar also tweeted his gratitude to the railways. The examination, she told this correspondent, went well.