Jammu

Shuttle services of four trains that were introduced to help locals and stranded passengers travel between Jammu and Katra - the base camp of the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine - was suspended due to heavy rain and flooding on Wednesday.

The scheduled train services from New Delhi to Katra have also been short-terminated.

These shuttle services, which started on September 1, were scheduled to run until September 15.

“The shuttle services between Jammu and Katra, which was started to facilitate the movement of daily passengers and stranded persons, have been cancelled today,” a Railway official said.

This step was taken in view of heavy rains and flooding of the track, he said.

Rail traffic in the Jammu railway division has been suspended for the past nine days due to misalignment and breaches caused by heavy rains and flash floods on August 26 in the Pathankot-Jammu section.

However, the railways have been running special trains to ferry stranded passengers from Jammu to their destinations.

Over the past four days, a total of 5,784 stranded passengers have been ferried in seven special trains.

The region had faced severe disruption of both rail and road traffic due to incessant rainfall since August 26, with many pilgrims getting stranded.

A landslide near the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra claimed 34 lives on August 26. The pilgrimage remained suspended for the ninth day on Wednesday.

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Last Wednesday, Jammu recorded its heaviest rainfall since 1910 at 380mm.