The suspension of suburban train services brought back crowds on Calcutta-bound buses on Thursday in most south Bengal districts.

Although both the state-run and private buses were allowed to operate at almost half their capacity, passengers were seen on the rooftops of vehicles because of the halt in the train services.

At certain places, police tried to stop passengers from climbing on the rooftops of buses, but failed in the face of collective protest by them.

On Wednesday, chief minister Mamata Banerjee had announced suspension of suburban train services in the state for two weeks from Thursday in the wake of worsening Covid-19 situation. She also announced that metro rail and state-run bus services would operate with 50 per cent occupancy. Since state-run buses were hardly seen on the roads, private buses, which also ran in less numbers, were overcrowded with passengers.

Sukanta Majumdar, who works with a medicine manufacturing company in Calcutta, said: “I tried to catch the special train for railway employees. But I was prevented from boarding it by the RPF. Later, I tried to board a Calcutta-bound bus on NH12 point from Ranaghat. But I couldn’t because of the heavy rush.”

After the state government announced the suspension of local train services for two weeks, the railway authorities have issued an order for running “patrolling car” for its employees.

But both the Eastern Railways and South Eastern Railway authorities said barring employees, none would be allowed to travel on such special trains. “We will not even allow any person on emergency medical need to travel by these special trains. This is mainly because there is an alternative mode of communication available. So, we will not take any risk and make the situation vulnerable for our employees who will be travelling by those trains,” a senior official of Eastern Railway said.

A number of motormen have tested positive for Covid, prompting the ER and SER authorities to reduce the services from Sealdah and Howrah.

On Thursday, railways authorities at many prominent stations under Eastern and South Eastern Railways launched surveillance engaging RPF personnel to prevent general people from boarding the special trains. Police were seen at stations urging people to leave the premises.

“It is a difficult situation for persons like me who are compelled to go to Calcutta for unavoidable professional obligation,” said Satyen Barik of Diamond Harbour who works at a Calcutta-based private agency.

“In the absence of trains, I was compelled to travel in a jam-packed bus. I don’t know how to take precautions from Covid during such a journey. But I am left with no option. Our livelihood has become uncertain now,” he added.

Partha Das, who works with a clearing agency at Kidderpore dock, said: “The state government should allow train service with restrictions and precautions. Else, the sole motive of containing the virus’ spread will fail with overcrowded buses and trucks entering the city.”

However, the Asansol Railways Division on Thursday allegedly flouted the state government’s order not to run trains. Railways officials claimed there was no instruction of suspension of passenger train services from the higher authorities.

“Those were not local trains, rather inter-state passenger trains,” a railway official said in Asansol.

An official of the West Burdwan administration alleged that one of the three trains was a local one that runs between Asansol and Burdwan. “It was not an inter-state passenger train,” the official said.