A total of 22 train journeys scheduled for today (July 01) were cancelled due to the lack of staff members, Sri Lanka Railways says.
Reportedly, the majority of employees of the railway department have not reported to work today.
As the expected shipments of petrol, diesel and crude oil are experiencing further delays, public transportation services have been crippled. The number of buses and trains in operation dropped substantially over the past few days.
Taking into account the availability of limited stocks of fuel in the country, the government recently announced that fuel volumes are dispensed only to vehicles belonging to essential services such as ports, health sector, distribution of essential food items, and transportation of agricultural products, from June 27 to July 10.
However, the employees in essential services are facing challenges in reporting to work due to the ongoing fuel crisis.