Jamshedpur: Persistent delays in running of passenger trains on the Chakradharpur-Tatanagar section has turned into a chronic issue for the past three years.Passengers claimed that late running of passenger trains has persisted despite public agitations. People accused the Chakradharpur railway division of South Eastern Railway of prioritising freight trains over passenger services.“The distance between Chakradharpur and Tatanagar is 62 km and ideally it should take an hour for an express train to cover the distance. But passenger trains are taking four to five hours,” said Manav Kedia, president of Singhbhum Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI). Kedia has written several letters to Union railway minister Ashwani Vaishnaw to resolve the issue.Records suggest that 33 passenger trains and 150-170 goods trains operate daily between Chakradharpur and Tatanagar.Elderly people, college students, office-goers and fruit and vegetable vendors are frustrated over the late running of trains.“To give passage to goods trains, passenger trains are made to halt frequently for many hours at Sini, Raj Kharsawan, CKP, Gamharia, Adityapur, Barabambo and Birbans railway stations,” said Mintu Das, a vendor who regularly travels to Chakradharpur by train.“Aspirants who travel to the city from remote places in Sini, Kharsawan, Gamharia, Barabambo for attending tutorial classes for engineering and medical exams and for other jobs often complain that they could not reach the institute on time and home due to the long halts,” said Shriman Narayan, director of a coaching institute.Passengers have got involved in brawls at stations and on tracks on six occasions over the late running of trains in the past one year, sources said.The issue has also led Jamshedpur West MLA Saryu Roy announce a daylong stir at Tatanagar station on April 7 to press for speedy resolution. Jamshedpur MP Bidyut Baran Mahato also took up the matter with Vaishnaw in Delhi on Thursday. “I have suggested a balanced policy which implies prioritising two passenger trains for every one freight train to address the worsening congestion,” the MP said.Chakradharpur DRM, Tarun Huria, said that a dedicated loop line for the goods trains has been planned between Tatanagar and Chakradharpur stations to address the congestion on existing tracks.In 2025-26, a total of 184.15 lakh passengers travelled on trains on the division, generating a revenue of Rs 533 crore for the railways.