Railway commuters at the Mumbai Central station can now enjoy a fresh pizza and other assorted cuisines from automatic food vending machines at the Gen NX food-vending court.
Collaborating with Bueno Insta Pizza Ltd (YESS PIZZA) and Owl Tech Private Ltd (FRSHLY), the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has set up these food vending machines. More importantly, however, the food served is expected to be fresh.
“The machines will work on the principle of 3Fs: fresh, fast and fun. Passengers can relish fast food items and various cuisines through the vending machines. The outlet will be [operated] from 7 am, and 11 am,” said an IRCTC spokesperson.
Passengers can now get custom-made meals at Mumbai Central Station’s new food-vending court. Automatic food vending machines will serve freshly made food within 2 minutes at the click of a button. (Source: Piyush Goyal)
At its vending machines, YESS PIZZA will serve everything from thin-crust pizzas, french fries and popcorn to fresh fruit juice and ice cream, reports Times of India.
The centre of attention, however, is the pizza-making vending machine, where customers have the option of choosing the kind of topping they want and witness the entire process of making and delivering the pizza within the span of just five minutes. Each 10.5-inch pizza will cost anywhere between Rs 150-300, while the other items on the menu will cost Rs 100 or less.
For representational purposes only. (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
FRSHLY, meanwhile, will serve pre-packaged meals from popular brands via an automated machine. With a shelf life of six-eight hours, these meals are packed and stored in the machine, and replaced twice a day before lunch and dinner, according to Times of India. Fitted with a robotic arm and reheating device, the vending machine will serve hot and fresh meals to its customers.
Instead of depending on unhygienic food on railway platforms, commuters can now choose to eat food from their favourite popular brands. However, like any new piece of railway infrastructure, the question is whether these vending machines can handle the footfall in Mumbai Central.
Food vending machine at Mumbai Central station. (Source: Piyush Goyal)
(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)
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A thin mist envelops the sky and the billion stars that embellish it. The mighty Himayalas surround you as your train chugs through the idyllic town of Shimla. While you are sitting inside a train, you can get a perfect view of the gorgeous surroundings. Fantastic, isn’t it?
The trial run of the Vistadome coach by the Indian Railways was completed successfully on Sunday, 11 November 2018 and you will soon be able to embark upon this dreamlike journey. Here are seven things to know about the train:
1. The Kalka-Shimla railway track is a UNESCO World Heritage site and falls under the Ambala division of Northern railways. Now the Vistadome coach, which has been named Nihaar, makes it a one-of-its-kind route.
2. Thanks to a 12-mm-thick glass on the roof and door of the Vistadome, passengers can enjoy a panoramic view of the pristine Himalayas as they travel on the 4+ hour journey.
3. The Vistadome coach has the capacity to seat 36 passengers and will be equipped with LED lights, window blinds and cushioned wooden interiors.
4. To make the journey even more interesting, the coach will have revolving chairs as well as bio-vacuum toilets, which among many more amenities, will make your travel fun.
5. Piyush Goyal, the Minister of Railways, tweeted saying,
“The Kalka-Shimla Rail, equipped with a Vistadome Coach, ran its first trial trip today.
6. Although the timing, fare and a total number of coaches are yet to be decided by the Ministry, the successful trial run shows promise that Shimla-Kalka train will begin operations very soon.
7. Following this, the Ministry of Railways has commissioned another Vistadome coach on the Mumbai-Goa route, which will give passengers a stunning view of the Western Ghats!
Railway stations, roads, roadside walls, and public places in India are never devoid of that telltale red paan stain. As disgusting as it is to see walls coated with it, it takes a lot of effort to scrub them off.
However, thanks to the efforts of eight girls from the Ramnarain Ruia college in Mumbai, these efforts can now be minimised.
The team comprising Aishwarya Rajurkar, Anjali Vaidya, Komal Parab, Maithili Savant, Mitali Patil, Nishtha Pange, Sanika Ambre and Shrutika Sawant were on a quest to find an easy method to clean the paan stains from the railway stations of Mumbai.
As the footfall in almost every station is in thousands, surely stained walls, floors, stairs and even trains are a huge problem. The innovators wanted to tackle precisely this.
Speaking to the Times of India, Shrutika said, “We met paan vendors to understand the ingredient in the paan that gives the colour. We realised that catechu and slaked lime are responsible for the red-brown colour. We also met some cleaners to understand the practical difficulties in washing off paan stains. We interacted with industries to find out about chemicals used as cleaning agents.”
The method involves using microbes and enzymes that naturally process the red pigment of paan products into a ‘colourless product’. The students plan to create a gel with these enzymes that can be pasted over the stains to dissolve the stains, which can then be scrubbed off with far less water than used today.
The product will reduce the work of cleaners in Mumbai as well as cut down on the use of water and acid required to clean the paan mess. If you have ever been to Mumbai railway stations, you know the product is an urgent necessity and will be of great help to the cleaners.
As Sanika explained, busy stations in Mumbai like Sion use up to 10 litres of acid every month to clean the stains. “While smaller stations get three to four cleaners to clean platforms, some big ones outsource the work to cleaning agencies,” she told the publication.
It takes the railway authorities over 60,000 litres of water and crores of rupees from the budget to clean the stains.
Source: Nishtha Pange/ Facebook.
Ideally, the public should not dirty such spaces in the first place. But till we as a country get there, the microbes and enzymes discovered by the college students will help to reduce the use of water and acid in cleaning platforms.
Mayuri Rege, a faculty member from the Department of Science and Technology who led this project told TOI, “The students started a social media drive with the #PaanSePareshan [campaign] to raise awareness, and they plan to continue with it.”
The team became the only undergraduate college among 300 entries to receive an award at the Genetically Engineered Machines (iGem) competition held by MIT, Boston. They were nominated for the ‘Best Project Under Environment’ and a prize for the best presentation. They also won a special award in the ‘Best Integrated Human Practices’ category.
At 73-metres (239.5 feet), the Qutub Minar stands as the tallest minaret in the world made up of bricks.
Now imagine a railway bridge twice the height!
According to an NDTV report, on December 9, the Northeast Frontier Railway stated that it is constructing the world’s tallest girder railway bridge of the world in Manipur. This is from the point of view of pillar height.
Under construction across the valley of river Ijai near Noney with a pier height of 141 meters (462.598 feet), it will “surpass the existing record of 139 meters of the Mala-Rijeka Viaduct in Montenegro in Europe,” said NFR Senior Public Relations Officer, in a statement.
1) The bridge is being constructed as part of the new 111-km long Jiribam-Tupul-Imphal broad gauge line project. This will connect Manipur with the rest of the country.
2) The pillars of the bridge have already been built. Named ‘Bridge No 164’ by the Indian Railways, it will be 703 meters in length. “The piers of the bridge are constructed using hydraulic augers. The tall piers needed specially designed ‘slip-form technique’ to ensure efficient and continual construction,” Mr Ojah added in the press release.
3) The steel girders for the bridge are pre-fabricated in a workshop, transported in segments and erected at the site by the Cantilever launching scheme. The safety and speedy conveyance of construction material and men to the top is ensured with self-erecting electric lifts at each pier.
4) The project will have over 45 tunnels, the longest of these will be Tunnel No. 12 with a length of 10.280 km.
5) This will also be the longest railway tunnel in the North East. According to a September 2018 Financial Express report, three IITs of the country including Kanpur, Roorkee and Guwahati are also associated with this project for technical support and proof-checking of designs to ensure that the bridge is cost-efficient and sustainable.
The Jiribam-Tupul-Imphal project was taken up in the year 2008 at the cost of Rs 13,809 crore. The 111 km long Jiribam-Imphal railway line passes through steep rolling hills of the Patkai region, passing through a number of deep gorges and crossing over several rivers flowing at low ground levels. Since its declaration as a national project, construction has picked up momentum in the last three years.
Monday morning could have turned into a dark day for three school students and their families if it wasn’t for an alert motorman and railway personnel.
Three students of class eight, aged 12-13, left their school during the morning recess without informing their teachers.
Playfully, they left from Nagpada and unwittingly landed on the Byculla station tracks.
According to a Mumbai Mirror report, the CCTV footage caught the students on the slope at the beginning of platform number 1.
It shows how the first student lost his balance on the slope, while the second and third ran behind him and followed suit.
Little did they know that a train was approaching from behind.
It could have crushed the three, if the motorman and the railway personnel did not intervene.
Speaking about how the tragedy was averted, inspector Rakesh Kumar, Railway Protection Force (RPF), Byculla, told the publication, “Our personnel saw them when they were running up the platform. Luckily, the motorman had slowed down the train, giving them enough time to secure a safe footing. We brought them to our office, and called the school and their parents.”
The publication spoke to the father of one of the students, who also had a close shave with death. He explained how the three students had stepped out during the morning break at 9.20 am, intending to have a snack but found the school gate shut when they returned.
He added, “There is a railway compound nearby, and they were trying to make their way from the rear side but reached the station. A train was coming, but they were not paying attention. Their lives were saved because the train slowed down, otherwise, I don’t know what would have happened. We do not have any complaint against the school. The children were at fault, and we will counsel them.”
The incident came as a major eye-opener for the school authorities. They are now in talks to terminate the services of the security guard.
When approached, the class teacher added how she was alerted when she did not find three students in their seats.
“We searched the campus, even the toilets, thinking they could be hiding there. Later, we got a call from the railway police. They apparently went to the station to have a snack. One of the students said he had Rs 100 and invited the other two to join him. These students must have scaled the wall behind the school and reached the station through a slum pocket,” the principal told Mumbai Mirror.
Some of the students added how the low height of the compound wall and the slide next to it make it easy for students to jump out of the premises. Hopefully, this incident will cause the school to increase the height of the wall or have a security guard posted there.
Thanks to the alert motorman and personnel, three lives were saved!
We hope the school’s counselling session helps students understand the hazards of such incautious behaviour. Let’s also hope that schools located near railway stations take lessons from the incident and take necessary precautions to prevent such incidents!
According to a Financial Express report, these tablets, called the ‘Hand-Held Terminals (HHTs),’ will help TTEs update Indian Railways about the real-time occupancy status of a running train, thereby increasing the chances of confirmation of waitlisted and RAC tickets.
When will it be put to use?
The current plan is to introduce these devices in the premier Shatabdi and Rajdhani Express trains.
“We are going to distribute around 550 HHTs across the Indian Railways network and based on the response, the service will be extended to all trains with reserved coaches,” a Railway Ministry official told Financial Express Online.
How will it work?
Once a train leaves its originating destination, the ticket examiner or TC will check the tickets. When he/she finds a reserved berth or seat that is vacant, he will update the status on his HHT device.
This device will then, in turn, send this real-time information to the Passenger Reservation System (PRS) through GPRS.
And so, the vacant berth will be allotted to waitlisted passengers on subsequent stations.
This will ensure that vacant seats are better utilised if a passenger fails to board the train or cancel his/her ticket before the preparation of the chart.
It can download source charts, current booking lists and charts of remote locations on the train through GPRS. It can also download the list of after-charting cancelled passengers at an interval of every hour from departure time.
The device can also mark attendance of passengers in any coach and also allows for a status upgrade like class upgrade/downgrade and an alternate berth allotment.
The Railway Ministry official further mentioned that HHTs would also replace paper charts with e-charts and enable computerisation of onboard passenger interface operations.
Once in use, future provisions could also include Excess Fare Ticket (EFT) and Point of Sale (POS)/digital means of collection of fare on the device.
At first glance, the Sasaram station in Bihar looks like any other. Passengers waiting to board, trains chugging in and out of the platform, copious amounts of tea being made and consumed, and that all too familiar smell that emanates from railway stations in India.
However, in one corner on platforms 1 and 2, you are likely to see groups of young boys who are busy poring over material and having animated conversations.
This is not a one-off scene; this is something that happens each day for two hours, in the morning as well as the evening.
For those two hours, this railway station transforms into a coaching centre for young aspirants preparing to crack various competitive and entrance exams.
In an attempt to help these students realise their dreams, Patna Superintendent of Rail Police, Jitendra Mishra, played good Samaritan by providing identity cards to over 500 youths. With these cards, they can prepare for various competitive examinations under a lamp post at the railway station.
There are multiple study groups at this station; all aspiring to find themselves government jobs after clearing the competitive examinations. The senior students visit the station regularly and coach others who are mostly from economically backward sections of society.
According to a report published by The Telegraph, around 1,200 students assemble on the platform every evening from far-flung areas of Maoist-infested Rohtas.
“There are remote villages, which still don’t have electricity. As a result, students come to the railway station and study under the lamp post,” said Vicky Kumar, a resident.
Santosh, one of the students, has been coming to this “coaching centre” for a few months now. Speaking to The Hindu’s Business Line, he says that he pays a nominal ₹3 for a set of 100 questions.
Apart from questions on current affairs, mathematics, reasoning and language, these students learn all that is required for the exams, including how to face job interviews.
The acute power shortage that the state faces is one of the reasons why students come out in such large numbers to study under the streetlights. The station has provided them with a haven where they can spend hours immersed in their books.
Every paan-wala and tea stall owner in the station knows these boys. They are called the stationwaale ladke (station boys). There are some students who spend almost entire nights there studying.
What keeps them coming back is their support in each other, the seniors and the uninterrupted power.
With a million dreams and hopes, these young boys throng the stations each day to study; while some make it, many don’t.
Travelling, or rather waiting, for a train in Mumbai is all set to become fancy, innovative and affordable.
The Indian Railway Catering Tourism Corporation Limited (IRCTC) is planning to open pod hotels near the Mumbai Central Railway station. They have already sent a proposal to the Western Railways regarding this, and approval is awaited.
Pod hotels were first developed in Japan and had attracted the world’s attention with their compact accommodation system which includes top-of-the-class amenities that one would find in any hotel room.
In 2017, India’s first such hotel opened in Andheri (Mumbai), and now, the IRCTC will introduce them to its passengers.
1. With these pod hotels, the IRCTC is planning to provide a stopover option that is more comfortable than the usual retiring halls. Although the first phase of the project will have 30 pod capsules, they plan on expanding the number of rooms depending upon the response they get.
“The capsule concept will be one-of-a-kind with ultra-modern, smart amenities available to passengers. This construction proposal is part of a wave of innovative ideas to enhance the passenger experience,” said Pinakin Morawala, Manager and spokesperson at IRCTC to Business Today.
2. Speaking to the Financial Express, Morawala said, “Each pod will be 5 feet by 7 feet. This is the way forward world-over to provide affordable stopover options to passengers. A hotel room costs much more, whereas a pod will have all essential comforts for a 7-8 hour stay time.”
3. Each pod or ‘capsule’ will have essential amenities such as WiFi, power sockets and USB ports, as well as advanced facilities like temperature and light control, entertainment screens and personal lockers.
4. The common areas will feature amenities like dining, washroom, lounge and changing rooms.
5. Officials have claimed that these pods will be much cheaper than the current retiring rooms developed by the IRCTC as well as hotel rooms. So, if you have a stopover of a few hours, you can safely book these capsules without spending a bomb.
6. If this project, which is set to be spread over 4000 square feet, is successful, the IRCTC will replicate the model in cities other than Mumbai.
“We have discussed the construction of the pod hotel and have sent a proposal to the WR. After the approval of the proposal and allocation of the area, designs for the exteriors and interiors will be done,” a senior official from the corporation told the Hindustan Times.
“2018, a year for many firsts,” Railway Minister Piyush Goyal said, referring to the Indian Railways’ achievements in 2018.
Indeed, this year, the national transporter had a long list of successes, including the fastest train, Asia’s second longest bridge as well as the least number of railroad accidents.
India’s first engine-less train and also the fastest, Train 18 (or T-18) made its debut on October 29, 2018. The 100% ‘Make in India’ project was manufactured at the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai at half the cost if a similar train were to be imported.
T-18 will beat the Shatabdi’s highest 130 kmph speed and run at a maximum of 160 kmph. Equipped with zero discharge bio-vacuum toilets, CCTV, automatic doors and even WiFi, the swanky train is likely to run an 800+ km route between Delhi and Varanasi. You can read more about the train here.
2. First rail university
With the aim of updating the railway system through research, development and skilled human resources, the Union Cabinet gave the green light to the National Rail and Transport University (NRTU)—India’s first rail university—which opened in Vadodara earlier this year.
“The university plans to use latest pedagogy and technology applications such as satellite-based tracking, Radio Frequency Identification and Artificial Intelligence to improve on-the-job performance and productivity,” said Railway officials.
You can read about the courses it offers, eligibility and other information here.
Connecting Dibrugarh in Assam to Pasighat in Arunachal Pradesh, Bogibeel, the longest bridge in the country opened earlier this month. The 4.94 km long road-cum-rail bridge is also the second longest in Asia, and its design was based on a bridge that links Sweden and Denmark. You can read in detail about the marvellous bridge here.
4. First electric engine converted from diesel
In March this year, the Indian Railways created history by using indigenous technology to convert a diesel locomotive into an electric one. Switching to the greener alternative, the engine also promises to deliver 5000 HP power as opposed to the original engine that delivered 2600 HP.
You can read about how the IR converted this loco engine and about its cool features here.
Travelling in Mumbai local trains need not be about humidity, sweat and stink anymore. The Indian Railways launched AC local trains in the busy city, much to the relief of the millions of commuters who use the services every day.
Although the first AC train (local) ran between Churchgate and Borivali on 25 December last year, it was on 1st January 2018 that the train started making six trips (12 services daily).
You can read more about the features of the AC trains, its costs and the lines they will run on in this TBI article here.
Reducing the number of accidents from 73 last year (2017- March 2018), the Indian Railways further reduced the figure to 45 between April and December 15 this year.
“Comparing the figures of the period between September 1, 2013 to August 31 2014, to that of the number between September 1 2017, to August 31, 2018, the fatality figures in collisions and derailments (whose causes the railways can address, according to the official) taken together have come down from 62 to 4—a 93 per cent reduction…” a senior railway official had told NDTV. Read here how the national transporter achieved this amazing feat of bringing the number of fatalities by 84%.
In a move that is sure to enhance passenger comfort and convenience, the Indian Railways has increased the reservation quota of lower berths for women and senior citizens!
The national transporter recently announced that it has decided to increase the combined reservation quota of lower berths in various Mail/Express trains and general trains, for senior citizens and female passengers of 45 years and above. Pregnant women will also be able to book seats as per this increased quota, as reported by the Financial Express.
As per the decision, the reservation quota has been increased in terms of seats in sleeper class, AC 2-tier (2nd AC) and AC 3-tier (3rd AC) berths. The percentile rise in the reservation quota has reached to 33 per cent more seats from 12 per cent.
The present situation is such that in the sleeper class of regular Mail/Express trains, a total of 6 lower berths per coach, are reserved for senior citizens, female passengers (45 and above) and pregnant women. In the AC 2-tier and AC 3-tier classes of the same trains, a total of three lower berths per coach are reserved.
Also, in Rajdhani/Duronto/fully AC Express trains, there exists no combined reservation quota of lower berths in the sleeper class, while in the AC 2-tier and AC 3-tier class, the reservation quota stands at 4 and three lower berths per coach.
With the decision in place, the calculation will be as follows:
1. Regular Mail/Express trains: A total of 6 lower berths per coach are reserved under the new combined quota in the sleeper class, which have single coaches. For the AC 2-tier and AC 3-tier classes in these trains with single coaches, the revised quota will have four and three lower berths per coach, respectively.
2. In the same trains, but ones with more than one coach, the sleeper class will have seven lower berths reserved per coach, while the AC 2-tier and AC 3-tier classes will have four lower berths per coach, each.
3. In the Rajdhani/Duronto and fully AC trains, there is no combined reservation quota in the sleeper class. However, the AC 3-tier class will reserve five lower berths per coach, while the AC 2-tier will reserve four such berths.
A tragic incident which resulted in the death of a one-year-old girl due to the lack of a reserved seat in the train has brought into the light the lack of awareness around emergency quota seats in the Indian Railways.
As reported by India Today, the one-year-old girl, Marium, who was suffering from heart disease, was travelling on the Maveli Express from Kannur to Thiruvananthapuram for urgent medical treatment.
Mariam’s parents, Shameer and Sumayya, pleaded with the TTEs for a berth in a reserved compartment, but the train was fully booked, so the TTEs directed them to travel in a general compartment.
“They were not ready to offer us a reservation despite Mariam’s health deteriorating. I pleaded with the railway officials for a berth. Finally, I took my wife and Mariam to a ladies compartment where the crowd was thinner and [I] travelled in the general compartment from Kozhikode,” Shameer said.
Unfortunately, Marium did not survive the journey.
As per the rule, all passengers who are travelling via train for medical purposes can avail an emergency quota, which allows them to secure seats, even at short notice. In such cases, the reservation clerk needs to reach out to the division office, and the application for the seat under the said quota needs to be submitted before the final reservation chart is prepared.
For the booking of the ticket, passengers are required to submit a doctor’s certificate as well.
To ensure that such incidents are not replicated it is essential to be wary of the provisions provided by the railways and exercise them.
Here is all that you need to keep in mind:
1) Patients bound for heart surgeries and equipped with a doctor’s certificate will be able to avail a 75% reduction in the fare, both for themselves and a helper. For a cancer patient and his or her helper, the reservation can be done for free.
2) Although there is no mandate which gives a TTE (Travelling Ticket Examiner) the authority to allot seats for emergency travel for treatment, they can, however, provide them on humanitarian grounds.
3) In case of any urgent medical care during the journey, it is important to use the reservation chart to identify a doctor who is travelling, and seek out his or her services.
4) As per the guidelines, in such situations, the TTE or the guard should proactively inform the control room about the said patients and arrange for urgent care and treatment, in the next station itself. Meanwhile, the station master is required to make all the necessary arrangements for an ambulance to take the patient to a hospital at the soonest.
5) The details of nearby hospitals are to be displayed at all stations.
6) While travelling under emergency care, passengers can reach out to the authorities through the toll-free numbers 138 and 182 for any assistance. Although 182 is mostly used for security purposes, the call is eventually transferred to the control room, and the immediate authorities are alerted for help.
(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)
Representational Photo: Pixabay
Soon, while booking a train ticket, you’ll be able to see the status of the seats available.
Following a practice in the commercial airline industry, the Indian Railways is working on a proposal towards making reserved charts public with assistance from the Centre for Railway Information Systems, reports the Press Trust of India (PTI).
While booking an airline ticket or a bus ticket on a website or app, you are given a layout of the seating arrangement where you can see the reserved seats.
Depending on which seats are booked, you can choose to purchase a particular seat. Moreover, in airlines, passengers can select their seats as per their convenience or how much they’re willing to pay. The Railways is also mooting a similar step.
For representational purposes only. (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
“As of now, we need to make the reservation status public so that passengers can see the status of booking of a particular train. Like in airlines, it will show passengers who are booking the seats the ones that are already booked, marked in a different colour. This can be done through PNR. Choosing seats will be the next option,” said an official in the Railway Ministry to PTI.
Railway Minister Piyush Goyal asked officials to take up this proposal following complaints “about getting wait-listed tickets on certain routes, leaving them with no other option but to approach the TTEs.”
In a bid to address this uncertainty, vacant seats on these trains should be made public during the booking process itself, instead of depending on all this uncertainty.
However, unlike airlines, there are serious logistical concerns in making this proposal a reality. For starters, passengers get on and off at different stations resulting in constant changes in the status of bookings, besides other security concerns.
Last month, the Indian Railways increased the reservation quota of lower berths for women and senior citizens to enhance passenger comfort and convenience.
(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)
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A slew of changes are in store for railways commuters, as the Indian Railways is rolling out several amenities in 2019 to enhance its passenger experience and ensure transparency in catering services.
In a top-level review meeting with senior railway officials on Thursday, Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal gave directions for the roadmap of forthcoming January-March 2019 quarter and said that it was necessary to monitor the progress to ensure better performance, reports PTI.
So here’s are seven changes that are in store for commuters of the national transporter for 2019:
Despite having mandated the ‘no tips’ policy on multiple occasions, many of us have been harassed by railway caterers for additional tips. Starting this year, the IRCTC plans to strictly monitor this to ensure that passengers are no longer haggled by catering service providers.
2. No bill, free meal
Taking a cue from prominent food chains in cities, IRCTC is presenting passengers the option of not paying for the service if the caterer does not issue a bill. With this move, the national transporter intends to stop the overcharging of food products by errant catering staff.
3. Live streaming of kitchens
Complaints about the quality of food served on trains will soon be a thing of the past as the IRCTC is employing different ways to tackle this problem. Of these, one includes the live streaming of its kitchens. By showcasing the hygienic conditions in which food is being prepared, the transporter hopes to win back the trust of its customers through absolute transparency.
4. Green Field Base kitchens
About 9 locations have been identified by IRCTC to set up Green Field Base kitchens, and a budget target of Rs 15 crore has already been allocated for setting up new kitchen and production units, and renovating the existing ones. The locations include Kanpur, Hazrat Nizamuddin (Delhi), Howrah, Patna, Secunderabad, Vijayawada, Egmore (Chennai), Ahmedabad and Ratnagiri.
5. Helpline for non-security complaints
As part of the direct instructions issued by the railway minister, a single helpline for all non-security complaints is in the pipeline. Expected to begin by January end, this platform intends to help passengers share their grievances and ensure better customer service.
6. Rate list on trains with catering facility
By March, any train that has a catering facility on board will have a rate list displaying prices of menu inclusive of GST which will be printed on a tin plaque. The plaque will carry the ‘No tips please, if no bill, your meal is free’ message to alert the passengers from being cheated. Also, PoS (point of sale) machines and bill generating machines will be distributed in all trains to the catering staff and TTEs by the end of March.
7. Extended Wi-Fi connectivity
A large number of railway stations across the country continue to lack WiFi connectivity, contrary to what was promised by policymakers in the past. From the existing 723 stations, the authorities hope to raise the number to 2000, and reward the Division Railway Managers who achieve early completion of WiFi work at stations.
In an effort to replicate the security measures and facilities that are in place in airports and flights, the Indian Railways is following their practices.
Last week, the national carrier announced that passengers can check the status of the seats while booking their train tickets, just like they can do so while their flight tickets. You can read the story here.
And now, taking a cue from the security measures and timely reporting that is mandatory at airports, passengers will have to report to the station at least 20 minutes before the scheduled departure of the train.
1. The reporting time has been set because railway stations may soon start random frisking and stricter security checks.
2. According to a PTI report, the national carrier plans to seal the stations about 20 minutes before the train departs to ensure smooth security checks.
Arun Kumar, the Director General of the Railway Protection Force (RPF) said, “The plan is to seal the railway stations. It is primarily about identifying openings and to determine how many can be closed. There are areas which will be closed through permanent boundary walls, others will be manned by RPF personnel, and yet others will have collapsible gates.”
3. However, despite the increase in security, the number of security personnel will not increase. “If we are investing in technology, then manpower requirement will reduce. These steps are a part of a security plan under the Integrated Security System (ISS) which was approved in 2016 to strengthen surveillance mechanism at 202 railway stations,” Kumar explained.
4. Authorities have identified all metro cities, and state capitals as “sensitive” stations and these are included in the list of 202 stations.
5. These security measures have already been implemented at the Hubli station in Karnataka and Prayagraj (previously Allahabad), where the IR is expecting a large footfall due to the Kumbh Mela starting on January 15.
6. The plan is to have a layered security check that will begin even before the passengers enter the station premises, so it prevents pressure during peak hours.
7. “An automatic vehicle scanner has been recommended for gates from where vehicle enter the station premises. For explosives detection, sniffer dogs and vapour detectors have been recommended,” an RPF official told the Hindustan Times. These will be part of the layered security measures.
8. “At each entry point, there will be random security checks,” Kumar said, adding that “However, unlike at airports, passengers need not come hours in advance, but just 15-20 minutes ahead of their departure times to ensure that they are not delayed because of the security process.”
9. Apart from the 202 sensitive stations, the IR has identified 983 stations that will be brought under CCTV camera cover through the Nirbhaya fund, according to the Director-General.
(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)
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Passengers aboard the Kolhapur-Hyderabad Express had a close shave with death. But thanks to two youngsters and their presence of mind, a major train accident was averted.
According to a News18 report, the incident happened on January 11, near Khanapura, about 26 kms away from Belagavi, Karnataka.
Around 12.45 p.m., 23-year-old Areef Riyaz Syed and his friend, 32-year-old Toufiq Abdul, were travelling to Belagavi city to get back the television set that they had given for repair. It was at the time that they noticed an uprooted tree on the railway tracks.
It was also at the same point that they saw the Kolhapur-Hyderabad Express chugging towards Khanapura from Desur station.
While a few people tried to push the tree off the track, Riyaz and Toufiq knew that the clock was ticking.
“Soon, we heard a train siren suggesting that [the] train was close. We wanted to do something to save the passengers on the train. Hence, we began to run towards the train,” Riyaz told News18.
The youth ran for over 600 metres towards the speeding train to alert the loco pilot. They yelled and waved their shirts at him. Fortunately, it grabbed the driver’s attention, and he was able to apply the brakes and halt the train just 15 metres away from where the tree had fallen.
Riyaz added how they kept running until the train approached them.
“We were not sure whether the loco pilot heard what we were screaming. When the train came close, we decided to jump off the track. Finally, he halted the train very near to the tree,” Riyaz narrated.
Thanks to their act of grit and courage, hundreds of passengers aboard the Kolhapur-Hyderabad train were saved.
The loco pilot, PP Pawar, not only thanked Riyaz and Toufiq for their presence of mind but also made a special mention about them in the incident report sent to the railways.
Last year, in a tragic accident in Uttar Pradesh, a passenger train rammed into a van at an unmanned level crossing (UMLC), killing 13 school children.
Following this, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal had gone on record stating that the Indian Railways would prioritise the crisis of UMLCs across the country and go to any extent to eliminate them.
Staying true to that promise, the national transporter has managed to hit its target of eliminating all UMLCs, except for one in the Allahabad division!
As many as 3,478 UMLCs have been converted to manned ones in the last year, reports IANS.
On January 5, the national transporter managed to wrap up this gargantuan task with the successful transformation of an unmanned crossing on the Barmer-Munabao section of Jodhpur division, into a manned one.
According to a railway official who wished to remain anonymous, the work behind the last unmanned level crossing in Uttar Pradesh is currently stalled owing to local resistance. However, the authorities are confident it will also be accomplished shortly.
“[The] Indian Railways is in constant touch with state authorities to sort out the issue,” he added.
Interestingly, the speed at which this accomplishment was made, is unlike any other undertaking previously initiated by the Indian Railways.
Between 2015-16, the railway authorities had managed to eliminate about 1,253 UMLCs. Therefore, this progress (which was attained in seven months), is at least five times more streamlined than any achievement by them in the recent years.
One would wonder about how exactly has the elimination of UMLCs helped in bringing down railway-related casualties.
Well, a railway ministry official has stated that from 130 deaths from accidents at unmanned crossings in 2014-15, the number reduced to 16 in 2018.
We congratulate the Indian Railways for this achievement and hope that all their efforts to provide a safe journey and better customer service are as fruitful.
On December 29, when Panvel resident Rajesh Kulal boarded the Jamnagar Express to Mangaluru to visit his wife, he was unaware that it would land him in a hospital, drugged and looted of his belongings.
Rajesh’s wife celebrated her birthday on December 27. But unable to make it to Mangaluru where she works at the time due to expensive flight tickets, he decided to visit her a few days later.
His plan originally was to take the Netravati Express. But he missed it.
With no other option, he decided to travel without a confirmed seat in the Jamnagar Express, in the general compartment.
He was promised a seat after Ratnagiri by one of the commuters.
The train started moving. It wasn’t a surprise when an elderly man, a co-passenger, started speaking to him. From the window seat to the upcoming elections, the conversation transitioned over time.
Speaking to the Mumbai Mirror, Rajesh adds how the elderly man excused himself at one point. He was to meet a friend in the neighbouring compartment, he had said. By the time the man returned, three more men sat around them.
As the clock stuck 6, the men started passing around food and water, also insisting Rajesh to eat with them.
After a bite or two, Rajesh started feeling dizzy. When he woke from his slumber the next morning, he had reached Mangaluru.
But his two cell phones, Rs 15,000 in cash, credit and debit cards—had all gone missing!
Before he could process the information, he fell unconscious. The railway police was quickly alerted and rushed him to the nearby government hospital where he was diagnosed with food poisoning and a cracked rib due to the sudden fall.
He tells the publication, “The elderly person acted very friendly and even showed me photographs and videos of his family. He said he was going to visit them. I was hesitant but later warmed up to him. The three men also didn’t behave strangely,” adding that the men offered chapatis and orange biscuits to co-passengers.
It was difficult to contact his family since his phones were missing. But fortunately, once he gained consciousness, he remembered his uncle’s number and scribbled it down. He could hardly speak.
The incident, as scarring as it was, passed.
Rajesh barely thought that he would come face to face with his perpetrators again.
Almost 14 days later, on Monday, the 31-year-old electrical contractor was travelling in a Churchgate fast, when he saw the three men who had drugged him.
But how did he recognise them?
“One was wearing a familiar jacket. He had offered me water on Jamnagar Express,” Kulal told Mirror.
Using his presence of mind, he nabbed one of them. But the other two men jumped out of the train.
Wasting no time, he called the Railway helpline number ‘182’ and handed over the accused to an RPF official. This accused was identified as 35-year-old Deepak Sahu.
A resident of Madhya Pradesh, Sahu was a part of a gang with a record of similar offences.
Lauding the victim’s alertness, Anoop Shukla, Senior Divisional Security Commissioner with the Western Railways’ RPF, pointed out how the quick helpline response system helped in nabbing the accused.
The Andheri RPF has now handed Sahu over to the Panvel GRP. A case under sections 328 (causing hurt by means of poison, etc, with intent to commit an offence), 379 (punishment for theft) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the IPC have been registered against him.
Among the several reforms initiated by Indian Railways for 2019, a landmark one includes linking its locomotives via ISRO’s (Indian Space Research Organisation) satellites.
This will be done to accurately track trains and automatically update the control charts about their arrival or departure.
The national transporter had already flagged off the system implementation on January 8, starting with few mail and express trains along the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra-Bandra Terminus, New Delhi-Patna, New Delhi-Amritsar and Delhi-Jammu routes.
Speaking to IANS, a senior railway ministry official said, “A new beginning has been made in the new year: the train movement information is acquired and fed to the control charts using ISRO satellite-based real-time train information system (RTIS) automatically.”
Developed by CRIS (Centre for Railway Information Systems) in collaboration with ISRO, the RTIS device installed in the locomotive will detect the position and speed of trains with the help of ISRO-developed GAGAN geo-positioning system.
Using this information, the device will send updates about the train movement to a central location server in the CRIS data centre.
The information will include arrival, departure, run through, unscheduled stoppages and mid-section updates.
Once the processing of data is completed, the information will be relayed to the Control Office Application (COA) system, paving the way for the automatic plotting of control charts with no manual intervention in the divisions.
In the past, the running status of trains was manually updated, and divisional controls set up for train movement control were dependent on the information passed between stationmasters and station controllers.
According to railway officials, the COA has already been integrated with National Train Enquiry System (NTES).
In addition to that, the Railways is also working with the premier science organisation to check accidents at unmanned railway crossings.
“The new system will help railways to modernise its control room, railway network for more efficient train movement across its network. The move is aimed at further improving the accuracy of train-running information,” the official added.
Making something ‘better’ does not always mean gigantic, world-changing steps. Sometimes it can also be a small moment, perhaps over-the-top in this case, but still, a sign of better things to come.
The Indian Railways saw a similar moment on Monday, when they responded to a request by a male friend of a woman, via a tweet.
The man, who tweeted to the Union Railway Minister directly, wanted the authorities to arrange for pain relief tablets and sanitary pads for his friend.
Not only did the railway authorities acknowledge his request, but also arranged to meet the health requirements at the earliest.
Although the situation in question was not life-threatening and did not require messaging the Union Minister of Railways, the fact that Vishal Khanapure, a man, did it and that the Railways responded to it, is a positive sign in the larger scheme of things.
Here’s what happened
Vishal was aboard the Bengaluru-Ballari-Hospet train, when his friend found herself in a difficult spot. She had started menstruating soon after boarding the train. This train leaves Bengaluru at 10.15 pm and reaches Ballari at 9.40 am the following day.
On the way to Ballari, she confided in Vishal and told him she was unprepared.
Vishal, who hails from Kalaburagi and works in Hyderabad, took charge of the situation and using his presence of mind, decided to seek help from the Indian Railways Seva.
According to a report in The Times of India, as the train was leaving Yesvantpur at 11 pm, Vishal tweeted to the Railways.
“It’s an emergency please…one of my friends is travelling on Hospet Passenger…(followed by seat details) is in need of Meftal Spas tablets. Please help her,” he tweeted.
“At 11.06 pm, an officer reached my friend and confirmed her requirements and took down her PNR details and mobile number. At 2 am, when the train reached Arasikere station, officials of the Mysuru division were ready with all the items she had sought. We are all surprised by the quick response,” Vishal told TOI.
Thanks to the immediate response of the railway authority, the young woman received the pads and medicines in time.
“Such requests are often made to us through tweets or on 138. We are always ready to help passengers,” an officer told the publication.
Moved by their gesture, Vishal took to Twitter to thank them on behalf of his friend too.
While Indian Railways deserves to be lauded for the help, the situation highlights the changing attitudes within the country. Perhaps even as little as ten years ago, seeing a man publicly demand hygienic solutions for his female friend’s periods would be surprising.
Moreover, the prompt request from an institution of public authority like the Indian Railways, might have raised many eyebrows.
While periods are a completely biological process, as a country, we remain largely unprepared to ensure women have access to the minimum at such times.
Moments like these, however, do show us that things are changing, and for the better.
We must not forget that this incident also sheds light on how we need railway stations, trains and public washrooms to be more period-friendly.
Although Vishal could access social media to seek help, it may not be the case with others. And so, it is crucial that these spaces are either stocked with sanitary pads and medicines or have pad-vending machines installed to cater to women passengers.
Here’s hoping such a future comes sooner, rather than later.
(Edited by Shruti Singhal)
Readers share:
Feels good that Indians have shed their inhibitions on matters that were earlier taboo. The male perspective has also seen a sea change in attitude. What do they say ” A friend in need…. ” quick thinking. Kudos to the railways for acting fast and not triviliasing the issue. These are situations that people never forget or fail to appreciate. -Jyothi Suresh
It is heartening to see such prompt response but it is surely not a singular praiseworthy step that railway is seen taking. Let us all support railways and other public utilities in their efforts to come out of closed mindsets and do our bit too (like if any other female passenger was carrying such support, they should promptly share those without being uncertain about availability if and when they need.)
There’s something about cold winter mornings and a steaming cup of chai. What makes it even better is to have that chai in a kulhad (earthen cup).
Fifteen years ago, erstwhile Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav had introducedkulhads at railway stations across the country. However, over the years, these earthen cups started vanishing, making way for plastic and paper cups.
With a greater thrust on reducing the usage of plastic, the humble kulhad is all set to make a comeback.
If you have ever had tea in one of these, then you are sure to vouch for the taste and aroma that it adds.
According to Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, in a circular issued by the board to the chief commercial managers of Northern Railway and the North Eastern Railway, “Zonal railways and the IRCTC are advised to take necessary action to ensure use of locally produced, environmentally-savvy terracotta products like ‘kulhads’, glasses and plates for serving items to passengers through all static units at Varanasi and Rae Bareli railway stations with immediate effect so that local terracotta product manufacturers could easily market their products.”
In an India Today report, the Minister hailed the decision and said, “Support to the domestic industry, help to the rail passengers: To provide tea, lassi, and other food items to the passengers, kulhads, glasses, and bowls made of clay will be used. This will help in environmental protection as well as will profit the domestic industry.”
Advantages of using a kulhad
1. It is known to give an earthy essence, flavour and fragrance to the tea.
2. It is biodegradable, hence can be thrown or broken, and won’t be hazardous like plastic. When you dispose of them, they get mixed with the soil soon.
3. Using a kulhad is extremely cost-effective since it is cheaper than glass or plastic.
4. Kulhads cannot be reused, so you won’t have to worry about the lingering of germs or bacteria.
5. They are also inherently hygienic, considering they are made by firing kiln.
6. Tea served in styrofoam cups can be harmful to your health. Polystyrene, which is known to be a carcinogen, is the material used to manufacture those cups. It leeches into the liquid poured into them, thereby posing concerns to your health.
7. Clay kulhads are alkaline, which means that using them can help in bringing down the acidic nature of your body.
Noted environmentalist Vandana Shiva, speaking on the benefits of using the kulhad, once said, “The kulhar is the symbol of an earth-based, crafts-based culture—the ultimate sustainable economy. The clay is obtained by desilting tanks, irrigation channels and streambeds. The potter desilts water storage and distribution systems and the fuel used in the potter’s kilns are the biomass waste that farmers provide.”
Here’s hoping that this move by the Indian Railways is implemented in its entirety and achieves its objectives.
