Northern Railways cancels 17 trains amid heavy rains in north India

New Delhi, July 9:  In view of the heavy downpour for last days in several parts of north India, the Northern Railways on Sunday announced that it has cancelled 17 trains and diverted 12 others.

In a statement, a Northern Railways spokesperson here said traffic has been suspended at four locations due to water logging. These include sections between Noganwan (Ambala)-New Morinda, between Nangal Dam and Anandpur Sahib, and between Kiratpur Sahib and Bharatgarh.

Spokesperson Deepak Kumar said: "Strict watch is being kept to run trains from the Delhi area safely because of non-stop heavy rains. Eight pumps are being run at the Delhi-Sabzi Mandi area and the station's trainable area to pump water out of tracks. Trains running in the Delhi area are still normal."

The cancelled trains include Firozpur Cantt Express, Amritsar Super Fast Express, Chandigarh Intercity Express, and Chandigarh to Amritsar Junction Express. Those which have been diverted include Mumbai Central to Amritsar Express, Amritsar Express, Daulatpur Chowk Express.

In the last 24 hours, several areas of north India witnessed heavy rainfall. The IMD has issued orange and red alerts in several regions. Meanwhile, Delhi recorded 153 mm of rain ending 8.30 a.m. on Sunday, the highest single-day rainfall for July since 1982, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).