Mumbai: The long-pending demand to restore the Dadar-Ratnagiri passenger train has moved a step forward, with the railway ministry ordering an operational feasibility study on restarting the Konkan-bound service from Dadar station.The move follows a representation by Shiv Sena MP Ravindra Waikar, to which Union railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw responded, directing officials to examine whether the existing Diva-Ratnagiri passenger can be reverted to its earlier Dadar origin.The Dadar-Ratnagiri passenger, once a preferred option for Konkan-bound travellers from south Mumbai and western suburbs such as Dahisar and Borivli, was discontinued during the Covid in 2020 and replaced by the Diva-Ratnagiri passenger. Since then, commuters have had to travel to Diva to board the train, leading to persistent resentment among Konkan residents and daily passengers.The demand gathered further momentum after the railways regularised the Dadar-Gorakhpur special train even as the Dadar-origin Konkan service remained suspended, prompting commuter groups, Konkan organisations and elected representatives from Mumbai and the coastal belt to renew their push for its restoration.In his reply to Waikar, Vaishnaw said the demand was taken on record in the interest of passenger convenience and that officials had been asked to conduct an operational feasibility assessment before any final decision.The study will examine key issues such as platform availability at Dadar, timetable integration, technical constraints and the possible impact on suburban services before a report is submitted to the railway ministry. No deadline has been set for completion of the exercise.Central Railway previously cited operational hurdles for the shift in 2020, saying the Ratnagiri-bound train from Dadar would need to cross suburban tracks near Diva, affecting six to eight local services and hurting punctuality.Even so, commuters continue to press for the train’s return to Dadar, arguing that the station’s direct connectivity to both Central and Western Railway networks makes it far more convenient than Diva for Konkan-bound passengers.
