RailEnquiry

Muktsar : Despite knowing about many accidents, deaths every year and warnings from the railway authorities during foggy weather, people continue to sit over the railway tracks and cross the unmanned railway crossings putting their lives in danger.The state transport department has also put 819 unmanned railway crossings and 75 critical unmanned railway crossings across the state on its official website, issuing warning to the commuters. But it seems people are not willing to follow the rules.Walking along the railway tracks near Muktsar railway station, one can find that people crossing the railway tracks with their two-wheelers and some of them even sitting on the tracks after burning firewood.Irked over this illegal practice, a train driver said, "During the foggy weather, our job becomes one of the most difficult. The visibility remains poor and some illiterate people continue sitting over the tracks for attending nature's call or burning firewood to give warm to their body. Sometimes it becomes difficult for us to apply brakes and save the lives of those sitting or crossing the tracks." The driver also said that people must also avoid staging protests on railway tracks, which could also sometimes result in a major mishap.However, when the people sitting on the tracks were asked about any specific reason behind the practice, they said, "This is not a new practice for us. Whenever a train comes, we leave the tracks for a few minutes and move out of the train’s way. So, there is no danger to our lives."