'I Fear Drinking Water’: Man On Overcrowded Awadh Assam Express Coach Says He Held Pee For 24 hrs (WATCH)

A video of a male passenger aboard the Avadh Assam Express, has gone viral on social media, painting a distressing picture of chaos and suffocation inside an overcrowded coach. At Lucknow’s Charbagh station, a reporter can be heard speaking to a visibly drained passenger seated by the window. The man reveals that he has been travelling from Rajasthan and has been stranded inside the jam-packed train for over 24 hours.

He describes his plight, saying he has been unable to even move, let alone use the washroom. He adds that he hasn’t had a sip of water during the journey because “there is no space to move.” When the reporter mentions government claims of passengers travelling comfortably, the man responds, “This is comfort only.”

The video shows passengers crammed together, standing shoulder to shoulder, struggling for space and air. Within hours of being posted on X, the clip amassed over 30.7K views, triggering widespread outrage across social media.

Netizens were quick to lash out at the sorry state of affairs. One user remarked, “12,000 'special' trains, 0 dignity for passengers. People are dehydrating out of fear. Welcome aboard Amrit Kaal Express! Where '12,000 special trains' exist only in the speeches, not on the tracks.”

Another wrote, “‘24 ghante se apni jagah se hila nahi.......’ What should we call this? Seat arrest or something else!!” 

A third user added, “I am getting claustrophobic just by watching him,” while another termed it a “Violation of basic human rights.”

The Avadh Assam Express (15909/15910), operated by the Northeast Frontier Railway Zone, runs between Dibrugarh in Assam and Lalgarh Junction in Rajasthan - a route notorious for its long duration and frequent delays.