Rajan Vichare, a Shiv Sena (UBT) Lok Sabha member from Thane, has urged the Railway Ministry to launch a special train from this location for people intending to travel to the coastal Konkan region for the Ganesh festival, which will be held in this year's September.
He said he has submitted a memorandum to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav and Minister of State for Railways Raosaheb Danve about it following demands from various quarters. The 10-day Ganesh festival, which will start from September 19 this year, is celebrated with more fervour in the Konkan region than in other parts of the state.
In his letter, Vichare said people hailing from the Konkan region have to face a lot of hardships to visit their native places during the Ganesh festival, and in order to ease their situation, a special train should be started from Thane to Thivim. He also suggested that the train be named after Dharmaveer Anand Dighe, the late Shiv Sena leader from Thane and the mentor of Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
Anand Dighe was the most revered leader and respected by the citizens of Thane. Hence, the train be named after him as a mark of respect to the great leader, he said. Considering the rise in the number of people visiting Konkan, people do not not get reservation in trains, he said.