A huge rush of people was seen near Anand Vihar and Kaushambi on the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border ahead of the upcoming Chhath puja and Diwali festivals.

In a video posted by news agency ANI, throngs of people were seen at the Anand Vihar railway station and the inter-state bus terminal on Saturday.

In the 46-second video, hundreds of people are seen on a foot-over bridge near the bus terminal.

Many workers and families in New Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) travel to their hometowns in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh for Chhath puja and Diwali celebrations.

In order to ease travel during the ongoing festive season, the Indian Railways has announced the introduction of 1,700 special trains, adding around 26 lakh extra berths.

A Railways official told news agency PTI that these additional trains were being run to alleviate the high passenger demand on account of both Diwali and Chhath Puja.

“Approximately 26 lakh extra berths have been added for the convenience of passengers,” the official told PTI.

He added that these would be extra berths in addition to the ones already available on the regular trains across the Railways network.

The surge in train reservation requests is making it challenging for individuals intending to travel home for festivities to secure a reserved berth.

Delhi HC dismisses plea challenging Chhath Puja ban in national capital

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday refused to entertain a plea against the ban of celebrating Chhath Puja on the banks of river Yamuna, stressing that the restrictions in place are to prevent pollution in the river.

“It’s for the purpose to prevent river pollution,” justice Subramanian Prasad said while hearing a plea filed by Chhath Puja Sangharsh Samiti. “The counsel for the petitioner seeks permission to withdraw. Dismissed as withdrawn,” court said in its order.