Tension prevailed on train no. 22691 KSR Bengaluru City - Delhi Hazrat Nizamuddin Rajdhani Express at around 10 am on Saturday, after a couple aged 23 and 25--who were supposed to be in quarantine, were found travelling. However, the co-passengers and the travelling ticket examiner (TTE) noticed the stamp and halted the train in Kazipet railway station in Telangana, and called in local police and the medical team to shift them.  

The passengers were travelling in the third air-conditioned, B1 compartment. Railway officials said that they had a hard time convincing the couple, who have been directed to be in home quarantine by authorities, to get off the train. “They behaved aggressively and refused to oblige to our appeals,” a spokesperson from South Central Railway told TNM. 

The passengers are most likely from Bengaluru. “They were wearing full sized shirts and hid the stamp, but the co-passengers and train TTE found it later,” the spokesperson added. 

After a lot of struggle, police were finally able to shift them in an ambulance and were rushed to Hyderabad. Officials said the train halted for almost one-and-half hours for the couple to disembark and for the coach to be disinfected.

Meanwhile, passengers from B1 bogey were evacuated. The bogey was emptied and disinfected. The passengers travelling along with the couple were accommodated in other coaches. “The other passengers did not come in contact with the couple, so we shifted them to other coaches,” the spokesperson said. 

The couple has been reportedly shifted to a quarantine facility in Hyderabad. However, the Director of Public Health, G Srinivasa Rao is yet to issue a statement in this regard.

In a similar incident, four passengers who were supposed to be in quarantine were found travelling in Godan Express, train no.11055 (Mumbai to Jabalpur) on March 16 in B1 Coach. On Friday, they were tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the pandemic. These passengers had returned from Dubai, railway officials said. “All concerned have been alerted to take necessary action,” the Ministry of Railways said.

*A patient’s identity is not revealed by the government for privacy reasons. Some patients choose to make a public declaration of their health status.