Panaji, 17 June, 2011

Heavy monsoon rains Friday threw train traffic along the Konkan Railway (KR) route out of gear in Goa as a mudslide protection wall along the rail track near Ratnagiri in Maharashtra came crumbling down, an official said.

"Trains on the KR route were halted," said Baban Ghatge, Konkan Railway public relations manager.

"We are clearing the debris on the tracks which has halted the movement of virtually all the trains on the KR route," Ghatge said, adding that the trains would be able to resume after a few hours.

Several trains going towards Mumbai have been halted at Ratnagiri station, 180 km from here, and buses have been arranged for passengers, he added.