Rly Identify 13 Trains Worst

Affected By 'Drug Menace'

New Delhi : Railways have admitted that cases of drugging and looting are rampant in the Mumbai-Varanasi and Delhi-Guwahati sections and identified 13 trains as the worst affected ones.

"It is an organised crime. We identified 13 trains in which such incidents are frequently reported and have taken certain measures to prevent the menace," a senior Railway official said.

"The unscrupulous elements offer passengers drug-laced biscuits, cold drinks, tea or coffee and make them unconscious before looting their belongings," the official said.

The Mahanagri Express, Tapaswani Express and Kalka Mail are among the 13 worst-affected trains identified by the Railways for frequent drugging incidents, he said.

Other "vulnerable" trains include Mumbai-Ferozpur Punjab Mail, Delhi-Guwahati North Express, Delhi-Dibrugarh Brahmaputra Mail, Delhi-Guwahati Awadh Express and Mahananda Express, the official said.

The Mahanagri Express and Kamayani Express running between Mumbai-Varanasi sector alone reported 38 such cases last year.

Twenty-four drugging cases were reported from Mumbai- Varanasi Mahanagri Express followed by Puri-Hatia Tapaswani Express (18), Howrah-Kalka Mail (17), Mumbai-Varanasi Kamayani Express (14), Delhi-Jalpaiguri Mahananda Express (12), Delhi- Guwahati Awadh Assam Express (11) and Ferozpur-Mumbai Punjab Mail (9) in 2009.

While eight drugging cases each were reported from New Jalpaiguri-Danapur Capital Express and Delhi-Katihar Amrapali Express, Delhi-Guwahati North East Express witnessed 10 cases, Howrah-Jodhpur Express, Delhi-Dibrugarh Brahma Putra Mail, and Nagpur-Tatanagar passenger trains witnessed nine, five and four cases respectively last year.

A total of 957 drugging incidents were reported last year while 200 such cases were registered and 41 persons arrested during January-April this year, the official said.

"We have identified certain stations as prone to such crimes. Constant vigil, awareness campaign and increased patrolling are some of the steps undertaken to prevent the menace," he said.

CR CRACKDOWN ON TICKETLESS TRAVELLERS

Mumbai : Central Railway has always been persistent in curbing ticketless / unauthorised travel through its massive checking drives. In these drives, 1.79 lakh cases of ticketless / irregular travel including unbooked luggage detected during May 2010 as against 1.27 lakh cases detected in May 2009. Amount realised from these cases in May 2010 is Rs. 7.88 crore as against Rs. 5.12 crore during the corresponding period last year, thus showing an increase of 53.68 % registering the BESTEVER MONTHLY ticket checking's earnings by Central Railway.

The Record earnings of 7.88 crore in May 2010, includes Rs. 2.99 crores from 59 thousand without ticket cases, 4.54 crores from 96 thousand Irregular cases, 32.66 lakh from 24 thousand unbooked luggage cases and 1.82 lakh from 236 unauthorised hawkers.

3.11 lakh cases of ticketless / irregular travel including unbooked luggage have been detected during the period from April 2010 to May 2010 as against 2.65 lakh cases detected during the corresponding period last year. Amount realised from these cases during the current year is Rs. 12.84 crore as against Rs. 10.55 crore during the corresponding period of last year.

Central Railway appeals to the passengers to travel with proper and valid tickets.

CR CRACKS DOWN ON TOUTS

CR conducted a special drive against touts on 4th June 2010. Two touts were apprehended (one at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus Mumbai and one at Byculla) computerised reservation centres. Updendra Saha was found in possession of 6 reserved tickets worth Rs.3670/- and Rs.4400/- in cash and Mobin Ahmed was found in possession of 3 reserved tickets worth Rs.4095/-, Rs.500/- in cash and one filled reservation form. Both were prosecuted under section 143 of Indian Railway Act 1989.

SCR : "PROOF OF IDENTITY"

FOR TRAVELLING ON E-TICKETS MODIFIED TO INCLUDE STUDENT IDENTITY CARD & BANK PASS BOOK

Indian Railways has been providing the facility of “e-tickets” for travel on its network. Passengers performing journey on e-ticket had to carry any of the following five as “proof of identity”.

Voter Identity Card
Passport
PAN Card
Driving License
Photo Identity Card issued by Central/State Government

With a view to make travel on e-ticket more convenient for the rail users, Indian Railways has decided to additionally accept the following as “proof of identity” for travelling on e-tickets, with effect from 15th June 2010.

Student Identity Card with Photograph issued by recognized school/college for their students

Nationalised Bank Pass Book with Photograph

However, as at present, except concessions for senior citizens, any other type of concessions including student concession is not admissible for persons booking e-tickets.

http://203.176.113.182/SCR/web/press/index.jsp?id=361

WR unveils Rs.750cr plan

to segregate Harbour line

Mumbai : In an ambitious project estimated at Rs 750 crore, Western Railway (WR) plans to shift the Harbour Line corridor from the east to the west immediately after Mahim station, instead of Bandra, which is the current route.

It will help WR create space for an ongoing expansion project that involves the laying of a fifth and sixth line between Bandra and Borivli. But this will be easier said than done: the plan not only calls for the razing of the flyover at Khar—that transports nine-car Harbour line locals from Khar to Bandra—but also the construction of a new railway flyover starting just after Mahim station and ending near the Mithi River in Bandra.

Already, two new additional lines are being laid out across the Mithi. This will now be used exclusively for Harbour line trains. The blueprint calls for an additional fifth and sixth line to the Western corridor, and though housed on the East, they will be segregated from the Harbour line. Finer details of the plans, which are available exclusively with TOI, show that the present fifth line that enters the Bandra Terminus will be defunct at a later stage.

With the Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation (MRVC) planning under the second phase of the MUTP-II to extend the Harbour line to Goregaon, there will be eight lines—an increase of three to four lines—between Bandra and Goregaon. Two will be used for slow trains, two for fast locals, two for Harbour line, and two for long-distance trains.

Railway officials say the project will bring a huge relief to Mumbai's saturated lines. There will be a separate corridor for long distance trains, that is, two separate lines from Virar to Mumbai Central, putting an end to the fight for space between out-station and local trains. No concrete deadline has been set.

WHAT'S IN STORE

The railway flyover connecting the east to the west and running from Bandra to Khar will be razed.

A flyover from Mahim will be constructed. It will open out into the new tracks that are being laid across the Mithi River in Bandra.

Western line tracks will be segregated towards the east side.

Harbour line will be extended from Andheri to Goregaon.

Fifth line at Bandra terminus will be defunct.

Mumbai locals to save power,

go faster and carry more people

NEW DELHI : The railways is set to introduce state-of-the-art power equipment on Mumbai’s suburban trains which will save about 30-35% electricity, leading to huge saving of money and resources.

Daily commuters in Mumbai can also expect hassle-free and faster services as the new measures will result in the speed of local trains increasing from 100kmph to 110kmph. It will also facilitate additional bogies in EMU trains.

"After introduction of the new technology, EMU rakes can run with up to 18 car length as against the existing 12 which will increase the number of passengers per train considerably," a railway ministry official said.

To implement the scheme in Mumbai suburban trains, a MoU has been signed by K B L Mittal, director general, Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO), and Dr. P C Sehgal, managing director, Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation (MRVC), to modernize operations.

An Open Letter to Railway Minister/ Railway Board/IRISET

To fill the knowledge and talent shortage, Railway Staff College needs to market Track Engineering, Electrification, Signaling Design courses to universities and colleages nationwide. As you are aware that On board signaling equipments are getting sophisticated. We need to do thorough job of preparing our workforce for demanding requirements. I hope you will support my ideas.

New technologies adapted for the on-board control systems have inputs from leading edge expertise in the fields of software, hardware and communications;however the current employees ts involved may not have the adequate understanding on signalling and operation.

Railway Staff College and IRISET need to take proactive role in ramping up the job oriented courses in Track Engineering, Signaling Design and implementation aspects rapidly. Here are some example of the companies that are offering courses, we understand IR too offers only basic and some intermediate courses but Railway Staff College and IRISET needs to do better job of reaching to schools, colleges and private sector to market the courses and stay on top of the latest technologies.

http://www.signet-solutions.com/irse-licencing/

http://www.railtech.co.uk/open-course-programme/

Railway board, IRISET and Railway Staff College should join hands and solve the talent shortage by recruiting top notch trainers/ Professors from IIT train them in Europe on latest technologies and develop high quality courseware and teaching materials. Later these course can then be marketed to REC and other Engineering Colleges.

General impression of the public is Railway Staff College/ IRISET is both the institutions are not doing much to develop the future pipeline of trained manpower. Look at China it is sending 350 engineers next month to California for building sophisticated High Speed Rail Network. Indian Railway should develop a comprehensive workforce strategy to address not just local needs but alo international needs.

Railway Staff College and IRISET should be asked to act immediately.

MRVC wants to connect the two

suburbs via a local train service

This will come as a relief to those who live in suburbs such as Virar and commute to Panvel.

Mumbai : The Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation’s (MRVC) has proposed that new suburban locals be started that would connect the two ends and via Vasai, Bhiwandi, Diva and a host of smaller stations.

This route is part of MRVC’s plan for the third phase of the Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP).

At present, there are only five shuttles plying on this route daily, leaving passengers fighting for breathing space. Of these, only one train connects Dahanu and Virar to Panvel. Others start from Vasai and often terminate at Diva.

There are only two lines on which mail express trains, goods trains and shuttles ply.

According to the proposal, there will be two additional lines on which only local trains will run. “Once lines dedicated to local trains are built, frequency of trains can be decided after studying the existing usage patterns,” said Dr. P C Sehgal, managing director of MRVC.

“The shuttles have only nine coaches. Almost 500 passengers are huddled in each of them during peak hours, also because the frequency is low. Local trains that will ply on dedicated tracks will have 12 coaches,” said a railway source.

The 74 km route from Virar to Panvel has 11 stops currently and takes a little over two hours to complete its journey. “The suburban trains, which use better technology as compared to shuttles, will help commuters cut travelling time by 10-20 per cent.

We also plan to have fast trains with limited stops,” the source added. However, the proposal is waiting for a nod from the State Government and Railway board.

The cost for laying both lines is likely to be around Rs 3,000 crore, while the rail works component of MUTP III is likely to cost Rs 30,000 crore. The first and second phases of the project have been partly funded by the World Bank.

BABA black Sheep in trains -Must go

Mumbai : Malad bizman wants Railways to act against 'fraudulent' cure-all babas who put up posters in compartments.

It's the ubiquitous writing on the wall of local trains.

>>Is poor sex causing marital problems for you? Contact Baba...

>>Is success eluding you? Get in touch with...

Divine intervention? The babas' posters adorn a local train compartment.

Such posters jostling for space and vying for commuters' attention could possibly be a thing of the past.

At least, Malad resident, Bhavesh Dharod (40), who commutes regularly by the city's lifeline, hopes so.

"I have written to the Railway Minister and top Western Railway officials about the advertisements," Dharod told MiD DAY. "These self-professed godmen swindle people. Equally guilty are those who put up the posters in trains."

Months after sending the letter, Dharod got a response, saying his suggestion was forwarded to higher officials.

Vasai resident Alok Mittal (57) said he had recently met a fashion designing student who was conned of a hefty amount by one such baba, whose contact he had got from one such poster in the train.

"The youngster had contacted one Bangali baba who said he would get a job with a top fashion designer in a week's time. The baba turned out to be a fraud."

"Of late, the number of such posters is rising, even overshadowing railway guidelines emblazoned on compartment walls," said Jogesh Pawar, another commuter.

'Will go to court'

Children from slums are paid to put up the posters. "We do get paid, as do railway staff who clean the trains," a boy from Kurla, who puts up such posters, said.

Meanwhile, Dharod is waiting for the railways to initiate action. "If no action is taken, I will have to file a PIL," he said.

The Other Side

"Our team is quite active with such matters. We often send our officers with RPF teams on a drive to crack down on such posters," Central Railway Public Relations Officer A K Singh said. "During the last few months, we have even called up numbers mentioned on the posters and have got people arrested."

European Rail Traffic Management System

Mumbai : The ERTMS has been many years in development, with the EC working with member state governments, rail authorities and industry to enable high-speed train systems in mainland Europe to work together. There are three levels of ERTMS technology.

Level one

An ATP system overlaid on a conventional fixed block signalling system, similar to that on GWR. It uses trackside transponders called Eurobalise for transmitting trackside data and signal information to trains.

Level two

A fixed-block system which uses a radio communications system across the track network including tunnels to control all train movement and provides the information on movement authority and speed without using the lineside signals, which are no longer needed if all trains are fitted with ATP.

Level three

This level performs the whole signalling and train control operation over a digital GSM-R radio network to determine position and speed. Also allows 'moving block' operation in which trains are separated by their safe braking distance. Allows trains to travel closer together, unlocking extra capacity on the network, and is quicker to recover from disruption.

Train Protection and Warning System (TPWS)

Developed as a cheaper way than ATP of reducing accidents caused by trains passing red signals. TPWS combines a train stop system with a speed trap. It is triggered at speeds of over 40mph and is designed to stop a train travelling at 75mph within the overlap region.

TPWS+

Involves the addition of extra speed traps further back from the signal. These can be up to 1.5km for a train travelling at 125mph.

TPWS-E

Involves the use of trackside transponders linked to train and track control, as well as speed traps, to monitor train movement. It is said to be potentially compatible with ERTMS technology.

Exhibition train to mark Tagore's

150th birth anniversary

Kolkata : Indian Railways will run an exhibition train Sanskriti Express to celebrate Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore's 150th birth anniversary and showcase his life and philosophy.

The train, flagged off by Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee May 9, will touch important stations in various parts of the country before returning to Kolkata May 8 next year.

Five air-conditioned coaches have been modified at the Liluah Railway Workshop in Howrah to depict Tagore's achievements and thoughts, an Eastern Railway release said here.

The first coach, named 'Jibon Smriti', will depict the life of Tagore through photographs, while the second 'Gitanjali' will exhibit his poems and songs.

'Jogajog'/'Muktodhara' will exhibit his literature, the fourth 'Chitrarekha' will depict paintings of Tagore and other eminent artists. The last 'Smaranika' will exhibit and sell handicraft and other items from Santiniketan, founded by the poet.

A commemorative volume on Tagore's life and creative works will be brought out on this occasion.

The coach will be kept for public viewing on platform number 22 of Howrah Station's new complex from 6.00 a.m. to 12.00 noon Sunday.

Tagore, who was born in 1861 and died in 1941, is among the most revered writers in the world who churned out poems, plays, songs, novels and short stories. He was the first Indian to win the Nobel prize in 1913.