ProUI

“We like the job and we are confident of operating the trains on par with male drivers. The job is good and the encouragement from parents and staff is good,” said the eight women loco pilots who successfully completed training at Electric Traction Training Centre (ETTC), Vijayawada.

The eight loco pilots who passed out were — G.V.S. Nalini Kumari, G. Sirisha, P. Lavanya, B. Hymavathi, Ch. Sirisha, Binni Kumari, Seema Kumari, and K. Reenam.

“Out of them, five are from Andhra Pradesh, two from Bihar, and one from Odisha,” Vijayawada Divisional Railway Manager Pradeep Kumar told The Hindu on Tuesday.

“For the first time, we have imparted training for 14 women. The successful candidates would be appointed as Assistant Loco Pilots (APLs) in the South Central Railway,” said Mr. Pradeep Kumar.

The women pilots were trained in engine components, driving skills, troubleshooting, identifying and rectifying faults, wheel alignment, brakes, driving rules, simulator, and other parts, said ETTC principal D.R.J. Prasad.

During the 79-day training, we taught them on technical and general and subsidiary rules. Already, the Apprentice Loco Pilots underwent training at the Zonal Railway Training Centre (ZRTC) at Moulali on signalling, said instructor Vivekananda.

“My father is a loco pilot and my dream to become a train driver has come true now. The job is good and I am ready to face the challenges, if any,” said Ms. Reenam, a native of Bihar.

Ms. Seema Kumari, who completed ITI in Electronics in Odisha, said the encouragement from parents and the trainers was good.

Meanwhile, South Central Railway Women’s Welfare Organisation president Preeti Awasthi felicitated the eight women loco pilots. “It is a proud moment for women of the country that the fair sex has forayed into loco pilot profession, which is a male bastion till date. The SCRWWO will make efforts to arrange separate food and rest rooms for women pilots,” said Ms. Awasthi.

South Central Railway Women’s Welfare Organisation president Preeti Awasthi felicitates the eight women

loco pilots

“We like the job and we are confident of operating the trains on par with male drivers. The job is good and the encouragement from parents and staff is good,” said the eight women loco pilots who successfully completed training at Electric Traction Training Centre (ETTC), Vijayawada.

The eight loco pilots who passed out were — G.V.S. Nalini Kumari, G. Sirisha, P. Lavanya, B. Hymavathi, Ch. Sirisha, Binni Kumari, Seema Kumari, and K. Reenam.

“Out of them, five are from Andhra Pradesh, two from Bihar, and one from Odisha,” Vijayawada Divisional Railway Manager Pradeep Kumar told The Hindu on Tuesday.

“For the first time, we have imparted training for 14 women. The successful candidates would be appointed as Assistant Loco Pilots (APLs) in the South Central Railway,” said Mr. Pradeep Kumar.

The women pilots were trained in engine components, driving skills, troubleshooting, identifying and rectifying faults, wheel alignment, brakes, driving rules, simulator, and other parts, said ETTC principal D.R.J. Prasad.

During the 79-day training, we taught them on technical and general and subsidiary rules. Already, the Apprentice Loco Pilots underwent training at the Zonal Railway Training Centre (ZRTC) at Moulali on signalling, said instructor Vivekananda.

“My father is a loco pilot and my dream to become a train driver has come true now. The job is good and I am ready to face the challenges, if any,” said Ms. Reenam, a native of Bihar.

Ms. Seema Kumari, who completed ITI in Electronics in Odisha, said the encouragement from parents and the trainers was good.

Meanwhile, South Central Railway Women’s Welfare Organisation president Preeti Awasthi felicitated the eight women loco pilots. “It is a proud moment for women of the country that the fair sex has forayed into loco pilot profession, which is a male bastion till date. The SCRWWO will make efforts to arrange separate food and rest rooms for women pilots,” said Ms. Awasthi.

South Central Railway Women’s Welfare Organisation president Preeti Awasthi felicitates the eight women

loco pilots

PUNE: Passenger movement on platform number one of the Pune railway station was disrupted for some time on Tuesday afternoon, when a portion of the false ceiling became dislodged around 4.30 pm and was left dangling.

Railway officials later removed the dangling portion. No casualty or damage was reported.

Officials said the portion of the aluminium ceiling came unstuck near a book stall on the platform and was dangling about one to two feet below its original position. It had to be removed as there was not enough support to reattach it.

An official said the portion was dislodged as the rods that attached it to the roof had been stolen. The administration will now ask the government railway police (GRP) and railway protection force (RPF) to increase vigil at the station to avoid such incidents, he said.

Both agencies will also be asked to restrict entry of people creating nuisance at the station premises. The official added that the engineering department would check if the remaining ceiling needed to be removed.

Harsha Shah of the Railway Pravasi Group said, "Such incidents of thefts have been reported on the station premises. The administration needs to restrict illegal activities at the station and initiate regular drives on all platforms." Shah said the security at platform number one should be increased as most trains operate from this platform.

DHANBAD: Residents of Nirsa continued with their road blockade at Mugma for the third consecutive day on Monday to demand for the halt of important trains at Nirsa.The dharna was led by former president of Dhanbad district's BJP unit Ashok Mandal who said the Black Diamond Express, Pataliputra Express, Ranchi-Baidyanath dham and Gomoh-Asansol train should be halted at Nirsa. Explaining the need to so so, he added that the vegetable vendors of Nirsa and adjoining villages are the worst-hit as they can never catch the morning trains for Asansol, the nearest market for them. The delay leads to the perishing of vegetables.Mandal said, "Students of Nirsa have to leave their home 12 hours earlier to catch a train for Ranchi from Asansol or Dhanbad, two of the nearest stations."

JAIPUR: In a scenario where buses and other vehicles take six to seven hours to reach the national capital from here due to the dilapidated roads and repair work on the Jaipur-Delhi national highway, railways and airways have become the most popular option for travelers. For middle and upper-class passengers, trains like Jaipur-Delhi double decker and Ajmer-Delhi Shatabadi express via Jaipur have emerged as viable and comfortable option.The poor condition of the Jaipur-Delhi highway has also put a dent on the revenue of the Volvo and other buses run by the Rajasthan state roadways transport corporation (RSRTC)."Passengers are opting for only for the night service Volvo buses which are only service running packed. In rest of the buses, we are getting passengers for places like Kothputli, Behror and Gurgaon as the number of passengers who opt for Delhi has gone down," a senior officer at the Central bus stand said on Monday.In order to retain tourists especially those who start their journey from Jaipur to the golden triangle connecting Jaipur-Agra and Delhi, the tour operators are providing them the option of trains and airways."During their advance reservations, we clearly tell them that the road journey between Jaipur and Delhi is pathetic and train is always a good option for them to travel between Jaipur and Delhi," said Sanjay Kaushik, a tour operator,.The Jaipur-Delhi double decker train which was launched last year from Delhi has already became a hit among the passengers.Even railway sources admitted that had the condition of the Jaipur-Delhi highway was good, the trains to Delhi would not have got that much of passengers especially between the two cities."Our double decker train is running packed since it was introduced. Many a times we have to introduce extra coaches to meet the rush," said Tarun Jain, chief public relations officer, North Western Railways ( NWR).According to the railway sources, at least 12 trains are running between Jaipur and Delhi everyday and all of them show no room vacant and tickets are sold in advance reservations."Be it Mandore Express, Jaisalmer-Delhi super fast (via Jaipur), Aashram Express (via Jaipur, Haridwar mail or trains like Shatabdi express, each train is running packed to Delhi. Both Jaipur and Delhi are getting good number of passengers for inward and outward journeys," said a senior officer with the commercial section of Jaipur division of north western railways.Even, the airlines providing flights between the two places witness jam packed situation everyday."The Jaipur-Delhi route is more profitable as it always has a good clientele," said an official with the Airports Authority of India, Jaipur.

GUWAHATI: The Government Railway Police (GRP) on Tuesday seized at least 6kg of contraband - pseudoephedrineHCL tablets - from the Guwahati railway station here. The GRP sleuths also arrested three persons in connection with the smuggling of the contraband. The sleuths said that the consignment is worth Rslakh.GRP officials said that the three, who hail from Mizoram, were bringing the consignment from New Delhi. "They were going to take the drugs to Mizoram and smuggle them to Myanmar from there. Many illegal drug manufacturers in New Delhi and UP are supplying these drugs to the region," said a GRP official.Two months ago in June, the GRP has seized drugs worth Rs 14.52 crore and arrested some12 peddlers, including women.Meanwhile sources in the railway police said that they have sought the help of Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) to curb the drug menace. "The growing trend of synthetic drug smuggling is taking on alarming proportions in the northeast. The state, especially Guwahati, is not only a transit point for trafficking of these drugs to Bangladesh and Myanmar, but also provides a lucrative market for dealers to supply improvised party drugs," added the official.

Dhubri, Aug. 27: Railway minister Mallikarjun Kharge has assured the New Moina-guri-Jogighopa Railway Extension Demand Committee of looking into its demands.

The committee’s joint convener, Tazmul Haque, told reporters here today that Kharge gave them a patient hearing when they met him in New Delhi last week and told them that work on the Gauripur-Jogighopa stretch of the new Moinaguri-Jogighopa railway line extension project had been halted because of paucity of funds.

“Kharge, however, assured us that necessary funds would be made available from the Prime Minister’s special package funds kept aside for development of Jammu and Kashmir and the Northeast to finish the work,” Haque said.

He said Kharge understood the importance of early completion of the project. Till now, a one-way rail route connects Assam and the Northeast with the rest of the country, but completion of this project will provide an alternative route.

The delegates also met DoNER minister Paban Singh Ghatowar and urged him to pursue the matter with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in consultation with Kharge. Ghatowar, too, assured them that the matter would be taken seriously, Haque said.

Dhubri MP Badruddin Ajmal, one of the delegates, met Singh during the visit and requested him to release funds from his special development package, sources in the committee said.

They said at present the total cost of the project was Rs 2,450 crore of which Rs 1,600 crore had already been spent and another Rs 700 crore was required.

They said they would soon meet NF Railway general manager R.S. Virdi and place their demands for introducing Sampark Kranti Express on Guwahati-Golokganj-New Cooch Behar route, extension of Uttarbanga Express up to Dhubri, Dhubri-Guwahati inter-city train and making the Dhubri-Silghat Rajyarani Express daily which now runs thrice a week besides a stopfor Saraighat Express at Goalpara station.

Dhubri, Aug. 27: Railway minister Mallikarjun Kharge has assured the New Moina-guri-Jogighopa Railway Extension Demand Committee of looking into its demands.

The committee’s joint convener, Tazmul Haque, told reporters here today that Kharge gave them a patient hearing when they met him in New Delhi last week and told them that work on the Gauripur-Jogighopa stretch of the new Moinaguri-Jogighopa railway line extension project had been halted because of paucity of funds.

“Kharge, however, assured us that necessary funds would be made available from the Prime Minister’s special package funds kept aside for development of Jammu and Kashmir and the Northeast to finish the work,” Haque said.

He said Kharge understood the importance of early completion of the project. Till now, a one-way rail route connects Assam and the Northeast with the rest of the country, but completion of this project will provide an alternative route.

The delegates also met DoNER minister Paban Singh Ghatowar and urged him to pursue the matter with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in consultation with Kharge. Ghatowar, too, assured them that the matter would be taken seriously, Haque said.

Dhubri MP Badruddin Ajmal, one of the delegates, met Singh during the visit and requested him to release funds from his special development package, sources in the committee said.

They said at present the total cost of the project was Rs 2,450 crore of which Rs 1,600 crore had already been spent and another Rs 700 crore was required.

They said they would soon meet NF Railway general manager R.S. Virdi and place their demands for introducing Sampark Kranti Express on Guwahati-Golokganj-New Cooch Behar route, extension of Uttarbanga Express up to Dhubri, Dhubri-Guwahati inter-city train and making the Dhubri-Silghat Rajyarani Express daily which now runs thrice a week besides a stopfor Saraighat Express at Goalpara station.

Multiplicity of authority, absence of a unified law governing urban transport and resistance to change – these are among the several issues facing the road transport system in the National Capital Region, according to a Parliamentary Standing Committee report on Transport, Tourism and Culture. In the report, which was tabled in the Rajya Sabha, the Committee has noted that the creation of NCR has posed newer challenges for a seamless, accessible, safe, affordable and comfortable transport in the region as a large number of non-destined vehicles, commercial and private, pass through Delhi every day to reach other States.The Committee, which examined issues related to regulation and management of public transport system in Delhi after the gruesome gang-rape of a paramedic student in a moving bus on December 16 last has noted that there are as many as 27 agencies and authorities involved in operationalising transport in Delhi. “The bus in which the incident happened was able to move freely throughout the city that night without being noticed or stopped at several barriers put up by the Delhi Police. Subsequent investigations revealed that the bus was plying without the mandatory permit to carry passengers and had been challaned several times in the past, and let off each time. It was mainly due to fragmented authority and lack of coordination between various agencies involved in managing, regulating and implementing transport related Acts and Rules in the National Capital,” the report said.

The absence of a unified law for governing urban transport in the country, the Committee has noted, is a challenge and so is the existing arrangement for enforcing rules. “There is an absence of an effective and integrated formal enforcement mechanism having a shared mandate/authority from all the concerned – NCT Government, State Governments, Union Ministries of Urban Development and Home Affairs and various agencies such as the NDMC, municipal corporations, DDA, DMRC, DTC, Delhi Police etc..,” the report added.

Citing an example of no convergence, the report pointed out that while in Delhi the Union Ministry of Urban Development is concerned with planning, traffic management is with the Delhi Police, which is under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, and the Delhi Government’s Transport Department is responsible for issuing licences and registering vehicles under the Motor Vehicle Acts and Rules. From planning to enforcement, each Ministry/Department performs its duties exclusively without formal coordination between them.

The Committee has recommended the setting up of a Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (UMTA) with jurisdiction over National Capital Region at the earliest. “The Committee finds that an interim solution for the problems in public transport system in the National Capital Region is the proper and planned traffic management, stricter licensing system, integration of bus services with metro and effective utilisation of ring railways in the entire region,” the report said.

The Committee has frowned upon the tendency of different agencies to work in isolation instead of teaming up for sustainable solutions. It said it noticed a “perceptible resistance” on the part of various authorities and to affect any change in the existing control over different aspects of public transport system.

“They appeared to be unwilling to forego their authority, even while each authority is working at cross purposes. There is a lack of clear vision and coordination regarding how the transport network should be designed, developed and implemented. Individual agencies such as the NCT Government, Union Ministry of Urban Development, Ministry of Home Affairs/Delhi Police, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC), the Indian Railways appear to be making their plans in isolation. As a result, services of different modes do not complement each other,” the report submitted.

The Committee has also called for reviewing the role and performance of the National Capital Region Planning Board in addressing transportation issues and recommended that a Central Motor Vehicle Acts/Rules may be implemented uniformly for the entire NCR in consultation with the State Governments.

Train nos. 16107/16108 Chennai Egmore – Mangalore Central – Chennai (daily) express will be re-numbered as 16859/16860 effective September 1. A press release issued by Southern Railway’s Palakkad Division said the weekly train no. 12653 Thiruchirapally–Mangalore Central Express will be re-numbered as train no. 16857 with effect from September 7, and train no. 12654 Manglore Central–Thiruchirapally Express will be re-numbered as train no. 16858 with effect from September 8. The trains running via Coimbatore Junction will not stop at Podanur. Extension of these trains to Puducherry will be notified later, the release said. Train 12998/12997 Hapa – Tirunelveli – Hapa (Bi-Weekly) Express will be re-numbered as 19578/19577 with effect from November 1 and 4.