Around 8 lakh devotees used Charni Road Station during Ganesh Visarjan 2025, Western Railway`s Mumbai division said on Sunday.
It said that the Western Railway had made special arrangements at Charni Road Station in Mumbai to manage the huge crowds of devotees travelling for the Ganesh idol immersions, the conclusion of the 10-day festival.
Charni Road station on the western line is the closest train station to Chowpatty in Girgaon area of south Mumbai where lakhs of devotees visit for idol immersions each year.
“Around 8 lakh devotees used the station over the weekend, with services running smoothly and no disruptions reported,” the WR said.
It said that to handle the increased footfall, Western Railway (WR) ran 6 pairs of additional night services (12 train services in total), with extra stops to ensure maximum coverage for passengers.
Over 300 security personnel from the Railway Protection Force (RPF) and Government Railway Police (GRP) were deployed to maintain order.
“Strict directional movement was enforced on the platforms, and separate entry and exit gates were set up to guide the passenger flow,” an official statement said.
It further said that for passenger support, 25 extra ticket-checking staff were on duty, and 24 booking counter shifts were operated along with 11 Automatic Ticket Vending Machines (ATVMs). All 8 catering units remained open round the clock, and a medical booth with 2 ambulances was available on site.
To ensure safety during the high fotfall at the station, 52 CCTV cameras were monitored the station premises, and toilet blocks were cleaned intensively and continuously. The overall arrangements were supervised by senior railway officers both at the station and from the control office.
The station usually sees a daily footfall of around 46,000, but managed a massive surge smoothly with 376 UP and 435 Down trains operating efficiently during the immersion festivities, the statement said.
