From Our Correspondent
Guwahati: A train load of persons from Assam who had earlier filed South India out of panic in August, today returned to Bangalore and Chennai in a special train from here at free of cost as the cost of their tickets was borne by Assam government.
The 16-coach special train left Guwahati station this afternoon taking people from almost all the districts of Assam to their places of job and work in South India.
Assam government has arranged for the free train ride to these people so that those who had fled South India just out of panic feel confident to go back, an official in the State Transport Department said.
Earlier on September 9 Assam government had floated an advertisement in local Dailies in Assam calling upon persons who had rushed back to State out of panic from South India, to register themselves with concerned district magistrates expressing their desire to go back to South India taking advantage of the free train ride.
About 20,000 persons of Assam origin and total 40,000 odd from the Northeast had left South India in August out of panic over a threat SMS that was doing rounds.
Twenty-six year- old Manas Boro from Udalguri district in Assam, who has been working as a security guard in the electronic city in Bangalore, informed that his family members had decided to allow him to go back only after Assam government arranged for the special train.
He said the government’s decision to facilitate our journey back had convinced my family members that there was no danger as such looming over us in South India.
The special train which left Guwahati railway station this afternoon will pick up more such passengers on the way in various stations like Rangiya, Barpeta Road, Bongaigaon, Kokrajhar etc.
Earlier, Northeast Frontier Railway had run two such special trains to ferry people from the region back to South Indian work places.