Title - Wanted: A pied piper for Chakradharpur division

RANCHI/JAMSHEDPUR: The Chakradharpur division of South Eastern Railway (SER) is in desperate need of a pied piper as the rowdy rodents infesting every corner of railway stations, tracks and passengers' waiting rooms are beating the medical department officials in the game of survival. After the railways' experts failed to curb the menace, the SER division decided to outsource the job to a specialized pest control agency. It will soon float a Rs 9-lakh tender inviting private agencies for its 'Operation Rat'.K N Biswas, spokesperson for Chakradhapur division, confirmed the development. "The Operation (Rat) will start from Tatanagar railway station. It will be extended to other stations as and when required," he said. Other stations in the division facing the problem are Adityapur, Gamharia and Rourkela.Tatanagar station is among the worst affected and railway authorities here had been left red in face many a times thanks to the rodents. "Recently a passenger was bitten by a rat while he was sleeping in the waiting room," said a senior official. Authorities often get complaints from passengers.

Even the first-class waiting room is home to rats. Passengers often complain of food items being stolen. However, careless littering also invites such unwanted guests which are often seen gnawing on discarded food packs. The Jharkhand Passengers' Association (JPA) has already raised the issue with concerned authorities.

"It is not a railway station but rats' den. I have not seen such huge rats anywhere else. Some of them look like weighing 5kg," said Sikha Anand, a student of Co-operative College.

Operation Rat will begin on April 1, 2013. Drive against rats is not new in Chakradhapur division. Earlier, the operation was confined to the coaching division. However, no private company was invited to bring situation under control.

Another problem is that of loose tracks as the rodents make holes by displacing the earth. Ranchi section had faced solved the problem by filling up holes underneath tracks. Tatanagar section too is trying to check the menace.

A couple of years ago, rats became a big headache for officials in Ranchi division after which authorities were forced to outsource the job to a private company.

Ranchi division spends Rs 24 lakh every year on pest control, said DRM Ranchi G Malaya. "After more and more passengers reported of rat bites, we intensified control measures in Ranchi," said Malaya. Authorities at SER's Dhanbad division are also taking adequate measures.

"Some women had complained of rat biting their fingernails in the waiting rooms," said Biswas.

"Wooden or iron plates smeared with adhesives will be placed at strategic sites to trap rats on platforms and also yards," said Biswas. "In Iran, the army had to be called in to tackle rat menace. It is good that authorities here have shown seriousness in this matter," said JPA honorary secretary Prem Kataruka.s," said Kataruka.