Dumka: Citing the Jharkhand government’s Tuesday’s order banning all outdoor programmes barring marriage and funerals in wake of a surge in new Covid cases, Godda deputy commissioner Bhor Singh Yadav on Wednesday asked the divisional railway manager (DRM) of the Malda division of the Indian Railway to cancel the scheduled flagging-off ceremony of the Godda-New Delhi Humsafar express from the newly built Godda railway station on Thursday.
The train is scheduled to be virtually flagged off by railway minister Piyush Goyal from New Delhi while Godda MP Nishikant Dubey is due to attend the ceremony in Godda in person. Chief minister Hemant Soren is also expected to join the ceremony online from Ranchi. Malda division’s response to Yadav’s letter was not known till the time of filing the report.
Dubey accused the state government of trying to halt the event deliberately. “The flagging-off will take place under any circumstances,” Dubey said. Accusing Soren of contacting the railway minister and trying to shelve the event, Dubey said JMM and its allies did not want Godda’s people to savour the moment. “This is the first time since Independence that a train will chug off from Godda. The chief minister and his father (Shibu Soren) will camp in Madhupur from April 9 and flout all Covid guidelines. What about that?” Dubey asked.