With flights above ₹12,000, West Bengal migrants in Bengaluru seek special trains amid SIR travel

With flight tickets to Siliguri and Kolkata crossing ₹12,000 amid a rush for Special Intensive Revision (SIR) verification, migrant workers from West Bengal employed in Bengaluru have requested the government to run temporary special trains, pointing out that existing trains are fully booked till March.

Estimates by associations such as the Nep India Foundation, which represents migrants from the North Bengal belt, and the Karnataka Bengali Kalyan Samiti suggest that nearly two lakh Bengali migrant workers live in Bengaluru, many of who are yet to travel back to their home districts. 

Sanjith Biswakaran, President of the Nep Indian Foundation, said that for workers heading to the North Bengal belt, including districts such as Darjeeling, Cooch Behar, and Malda — New Jalpaiguri Junction near Siliguri remains the primary rail access point on long-distance routes. “Between Bengaluru and Siliguri or New Jalpaiguri, Railways operates a limited number of weekly long-distance and express services, with journey times ranging between 41 and 45 hours. These trains run with restricted frequency, and tickets are fully booked till March,” he pointed out. 

For other parts of West Bengal, particularly Howrah near Kolkata and Nadia, where a large number of migrant workers’ families are based, there are comparatively more options, with over 10 weekly trains connecting Bengaluru to Howrah and nearby stations. However, workers said seats on these routes are also unavailable currently, leaving them with only flights as an alternative. 

Workers said airfares are too high and unaffordable and amount to nearly two months’ wages. “We usually go home only once a year, and the cost of a flight is equal to a month’s salary, or even more,” said Kishore Biswas, a security guard working in Varthur. He added that many workers are anxious about the possibility of having to travel twice, once for hearings and again for verification, something they cannot afford on their current incomes.  

Another security guard, Jameel Ismail, who works in Marathahalli, pointed out that travelling home is not a short exercise. “This will take more than a week, including travel, paperwork and the return journey,” he said, adding that availing leave is difficult for them, as some employers insist on immediate replacements, even though a few have shown flexibility in this case. 

Over the past few days, several migrant workers said they have been waiting at the Sir M. Visvesvaraya Terminal (SMVT) railway station in the hope of securing tickets. 

Railway officials, however, told The Hindu that while there has been more than usual crowd at the station at specific train timings, they did not want to specifically link it to SIR-related travel and declined to comment further.