ProUI

INDORE: Inspection by the railway department officials carried out last week has confirmed that a portion of the Dhoswas-Ratlam diversion road was constructed on private land. Railway officials admitted to the encroachment while replying to an RTI query by owner of the private land.Earlier, a separate RTI filed by activist Manish Soni alleged that the construction of diversion road (road number 191-192) in Ratlam was in violation of the original map and a portion of it was constructed on private land. TOI had published a story on September 12 about the Dhoswas- Ratlam road being constructed on private land.Sources from the PRO office, Indore, said that a joint inspection was conducted last week following complaints of encroachment.When contacted, PRO of Ratlam division, Pradeep Sharma said, "Inspection has been completed and officials are looking into the matter. About 20 metre stretch was constructed on private land and we will rectify it. The road will be constructed inside the railway boundary itself."

"Both the maps available with me and the private land owner show the violation of norms. Pillars at the end of the diversion road also do not come under the land owned by railways. The road has been constructed sidelining the approved plan in December 2011 causing monetary loss to the railways," Soni added.

GORAKHPUR: A tout was arrested from Gorakhpur railway station during an RPF drive to check rampant misuse of railway tickets on Saturday morning. Three tickets of tatkal reservation and a general ticket were recovered from him."Acting on a tip off, our team reached the reservation counter and nabbed the tout waiting for his turn at the reservation counter," said RPF inspector Rajesh Kumar. He was identified as Anup Kumar Mishra of Sidhdharth Nagar. "Anup runs a PCO near railway station. We recovered three tatkal tickets including Gorakhpur- New Delhi Vaishali Express, Gorakhpur- Bandra terminal, 2nd AC and Gorakhpur- Allahabad, 2nd AC. The general ticket was of sleeper class, Gorakhpur- Lucknow." Rajesh Kumar added.

Kochi: A suburban rail service can become a reality in a mere two years unlike  the high-speed rail corridor and similar projects, but to be feasible it has to cover the whole of the state, strongly feels Mr C. Raju, a former Chief Engineer of Konkan Railways and General Manager,  Rites.“We would need to install Automatic Block Signalling (ABS) every one kilometer on the existing rail line to enable more trains to run on the same track. However, the current section selected  -Thiruvananthapuram-Haripad-Chengannur  - is not ideal as the Shoranur-Ernakulam section is the most congested in the state with six lines from Mangalore and Palakkad merging into two here,” he explains.Raju, who had first raised the demand for a suburban service over a decade ago, suggests the feasibility study should cover all three metropolitan cities of Kozhikode, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram, and not  just the section running upto Chengannur. In his view, going in for ABS technology may prove cost effective. “The cost could be around Rs 25 lakh per km  and not Rs 20 crore as is being suggested. The main expense will be for converting the level crossing into a RoB or subway. This has to be executed  anyway considering  future traffic,” he adds.

G. Kesava Chandran, DMRC Chief Engineer and former General Manager of Rail Vikas Nigam , who is credited with the construction of the Edappally-Vallarpadam bridge, too feels the ABS system will not take much time to execute as it requires no land acquisition.

“The ABS system can be implemented in a year, although much depends on the agency entrusted with the work. Raising the height of platforms to level with the  suburban trains can be done in another year,” he adds.

Reliable, cost-effective rail plan has many takers

K.P. Sethunath

Kozhikode: The Rs 3,000 crore suburban rail proposed  for the Thiruvananthapuram- Chengannur and Thiruvananthapuram-Harippad sections has received a thumbs up from rail passengers' associations, who see it as the most realistic and suitable mass transport system the government has come up with for the state in recent years.

But they feel it should cover the entire state from Parassala to Kasargod as the project is both affordable and easy to execute with no major land acquisition required.

“The cost of Rs 20 crore per km makes the suburban rail system one of the most cost-effective mass transportation proposals  the government  has come up with in the past few years,” said Mohanan Manalil, a senior engineer with the Kerala State Electricity Board in Kozhikode and secretary of the Malabar Rail Users’ Forum.

“Compared with the proposed high speed rail project, which will cost Rs 230 crore per km to execute, the suburban rail project is realistic and feasible. It is the right model for the state which is short of both economic resources and  land,” he added, however, suggesting that besides studying the feasibility of the project for the Thiruvnananthapuram-Chengannur and Harippad sections, the government should consider taking it to other parts of the state too.

“We could broadly classify the state into three geographical areas - Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Malabar - and do feasibility studies for each taking their local needs into account,” he maintained.

C.E. Chakkunni, general convener of the Malabar Rail Users’ Association too believes the government should consider extending the suburban rail to the Malabar and Kochi regions while the work on the Thiruvananthapuram-Chengannur and Harippad sections continues.  

“If an existing double line track can be used for running a suburban system on the stretches selected, this could be done in Kochi and the Malabar as well,” he argued. Pointing out that the doubling of the Shornur-Kannur section was scheduled to be completed in the next one month, he said this could open the door for a feasibility study for a suburban rail system in the Malabar region.

Also, in his view, the project should encourage the state to come out with a holistic transportation policy for the state. “The government currently has no comprehensive policy or vision document covering  transportation by rail, road, water and air for the state, ” he noted.

भागलपुर/ बांका: झारखंड के सरैयाहाट के पास 14 सितंबर को स्थानीय लोगों ने हॉल्ट को लेकर ट्रेन पर पथराव किया. लोगों ने चालक व गार्ड को बंधक बनाया व यात्रियों के साथ अभद्र व्यवहार किया. इस घटना पर डीआरएम ने इस मार्ग पर रेल सेवा रोक दी थी.

भागलपुर/ बांका: झारखंड के सरैयाहाट के पास 14 सितंबर को स्थानीय लोगों ने हॉल्ट को लेकर ट्रेन पर पथराव किया. लोगों ने चालक व गार्ड को बंधक बनाया व यात्रियों के साथ अभद्र व्यवहार किया. इस घटना पर डीआरएम ने इस मार्ग पर रेल सेवा रोक दी थी.

The two-day 19th annual conference of the Railway Forum of Indian Society of Anaesthesiologists (RFISA) was inaugurated in the city on Saturday. It is being held under the auspices of the Indian Railway Medical Service Association of the South Western Railways.As many as 37 anaesthesiologists from all over India are attending the conference which was inaugurated by P.S. Prasad, Director-General of the Railway Health Services.S. Rathod, RFISA president, felt that unless the cadre had an infusion of fresh talent, it was likely that operation theatres in some railway hospitals would close.“The scenario is changing fast because our colleagues are retiring and not many youngsters are entering the stream,” he said. Dr. Rathod underlined the imperatives of averting such a situation by encouraging youngsters to undergo PG in anaesthesiology on deputation. Dr. Prasad stressed the need to make the Railway Health Services “as attractive as the medical services” in the armed forces and said the government would encourage young doctors in the railway health services, to take up PG courses. The next three years would be critical as 120 to 130 professionals may quit the service; this means there will be 0.6 doctors per 1,000 people in the railways. In the deliberations that followed, specialists in anaesthesiology spoke about the recent developments which had a impact on major surgical procedures with near cent per cent success rate in patients’ safety.

The frequency of train no. 17213/17214 Narsapur-Nagarsol-Narsapur Express has been increased to four days a week from the present twice a week. Accordingly, train no. 17213 Narsapur-Nagarsol Express will depart Narsapur on every Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from September 25, while train no. 17214 Nagarsol-Narsapur Express will depart Nagarsol on every Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday from Setepmber 26, according to a South Central Railway (SCR) press release.

ALLAHABAD: Tension gripped Chota Baghara locality near Prayag railway station under Colonelgunj police station on Saturday afternoon when railway authorities along with GRP personnel used force to stop some construction work on a makeshift temple situated close to railway tracks.This was protested by temple priest and volunteers of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) who staged a dharna on the railway track, forcing GRP personnel to resort to a mild lathicharge to disperse the protestors. The VHP leaders however accused the railway authorities of trying to demolish the temple and removing the idols from the spot.According to reports, a small temple existed near Prayag railway station level crossing where locals performed puja. On Saturday afternoon, railway officials along with GRP personnel reached the spot and asked the priest to refrain from undertaking any new construction at the temple. The team also chopped down the branches of a banyan tree underneath which the makeshift temple is housed.In the meantime, VHP leaders including Acharya Kushmuni and others reached the spot and entered into heated arguments with the railway staff and GRP personnel. The VHP leaders and volunteers thereafter sat on a dharna on the railway tracks forcing the police to resort to a mild canecharge to disperse the unruly crowd, after which the situation was brought under control.

Circle officer (CO) GRP, OP Singh told TOI, "Since the temple is constructed illegally on railway land, it was imperative on our part not to allow any further construction. This perhaps angered the protestors who were desperate to occupy the piece of land on the pretext of undertaking fresh construction for the temple."

On the other hand, VHP leaders accused the railway authorities of acting in an arbitrary manner and resolved to intensify the agitation.

Kochi: A suburban rail service can become a reality in a mere two years unlike  the high-speed rail corridor and similar projects, but to be feasible it has to cover the whole of the state, strongly feels Mr C. Raju, a former Chief Engineer of Konkan Railways and General Manager,  Rites.“We would need to install Automatic Block Signalling (ABS) every one kilometer on the existing rail line to enable more trains to run on the same track. However, the current section selected  -Thiruvananthapuram-Haripad-Chengannur  - is not ideal as the Shoranur-Ernakulam section is the most congested in the state with six lines from Mangalore and Palakkad merging into two here,” he explains.Raju, who had first raised the demand for a suburban service over a decade ago, suggests the feasibility study should cover all three metropolitan cities of Kozhikode, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram, and not  just the section running upto Chengannur. In his view, going in for ABS technology may prove cost effective. “The cost could be around Rs 25 lakh per km  and not Rs 20 crore as is being suggested. The main expense will be for converting the level crossing into a RoB or subway. This has to be executed  anyway considering  future traffic,” he adds.

G. Kesava Chandran, DMRC Chief Engineer and former General Manager of Rail Vikas Nigam , who is credited with the construction of the Edappally-Vallarpadam bridge, too feels the ABS system will not take much time to execute as it requires no land acquisition.

“The ABS system can be implemented in a year, although much depends on the agency entrusted with the work. Raising the height of platforms to level with the  suburban trains can be done in another year,” he adds.

Reliable, cost-effective rail plan has many takers

K.P. Sethunath

Kozhikode: The Rs 3,000 crore suburban rail proposed  for the Thiruvananthapuram- Chengannur and Thiruvananthapuram-Harippad sections has received a thumbs up from rail passengers' associations, who see it as the most realistic and suitable mass transport system the government has come up with for the state in recent years.

But they feel it should cover the entire state from Parassala to Kasargod as the project is both affordable and easy to execute with no major land acquisition required.

“The cost of Rs 20 crore per km makes the suburban rail system one of the most cost-effective mass transportation proposals  the government  has come up with in the past few years,” said Mohanan Manalil, a senior engineer with the Kerala State Electricity Board in Kozhikode and secretary of the Malabar Rail Users’ Forum.

“Compared with the proposed high speed rail project, which will cost Rs 230 crore per km to execute, the suburban rail project is realistic and feasible. It is the right model for the state which is short of both economic resources and  land,” he added, however, suggesting that besides studying the feasibility of the project for the Thiruvnananthapuram-Chengannur and Harippad sections, the government should consider taking it to other parts of the state too.

“We could broadly classify the state into three geographical areas - Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Malabar - and do feasibility studies for each taking their local needs into account,” he maintained.

C.E. Chakkunni, general convener of the Malabar Rail Users’ Association too believes the government should consider extending the suburban rail to the Malabar and Kochi regions while the work on the Thiruvananthapuram-Chengannur and Harippad sections continues.  

“If an existing double line track can be used for running a suburban system on the stretches selected, this could be done in Kochi and the Malabar as well,” he argued. Pointing out that the doubling of the Shornur-Kannur section was scheduled to be completed in the next one month, he said this could open the door for a feasibility study for a suburban rail system in the Malabar region.

Also, in his view, the project should encourage the state to come out with a holistic transportation policy for the state. “The government currently has no comprehensive policy or vision document covering  transportation by rail, road, water and air for the state, ” he noted.

प्रतापगढ़। स्वच्छता के लिए गठित हुई स्पेशल टास्क फोर्स स्टेशन पर पोस्टर लगाने वालों को नहीं रोक पा रही है। निजी कंपनियां अपने प्रचार-प्रसार के लिए स्टेशन को पोस्टरों से पाट दे रही हैं। यही नहीं लोग जगह-जगह गंदगी फैला रहे हैं लेकिन उन्हें न तो रोका जा रहा है और न ही उन पर कोई कार्रवाई हो रही है।
रेलवे स्टेशन को स्वच्छ रखने के लिए स्पेशल टास्क फोर्स का गठन हुआ है। इसमें स्टेशन अधीक्षक को इंचार्ज बनाया गया है। साथ ही जीआरपी एसओ भूपेंद्र प्रताप सिंह, आरपीएफ इंस्पेक्टर एके धीमान, सीएमआई आरएस चौरसिया सहित कई अधिकारियों को भी इसमें शामिल किया है। इनका काम है कि स्टेशन पर गंदगी फैलाने वाले लोगों को रोकें। इसमें पोस्टर चिपकाना, पान खाकर स्टेशन पर थूकना और खाने पीने की वस्तुओं को फैलाना शामिल है। ऐसे लोगों को दंड देने से लेकर अधिकतम पांच सौ रुपये जुर्माने का भी प्राविधान रखा गया है। एसटीएफ का गठन हुए करीब 15 दिन से अधिक बीत गया है। गठन के तुरंत बाद स्टेशन को साफ कराया गया था। स्टेशन पर लगे पोस्टरों को भी हटवाया गया था। निर्णय लिया गया था कि आगे से इस तरह की हरकत करने वालों को रोका जाएगा। गठन के बाद सभी इस जिम्मेदारी को भूल गए। स्टेशन पर कई निजी कंपनियों ने फिर से पोस्टर चिपका दिया है। यही नहीं लोग जगह-जगह गंदगी भी फैला रहे हैं लेकिन टास्कफोर्स ने इस बारे में एक भी सार्थक कदम नहीं उठाया।
स्टेशन परिसर में निजी कंपनियों द्वारा लगाए पोस्टरों के बारे में जब सीएमआई आरएस चौरसिया से पूछा गया तो उन्होंने कंपनी के नंबरों पर फोन कर तुरंत इसे हटवाने की बात कही। साथ ही कहा कि दोबारा इस तरह की हरकत किए जाने पर एफआईआर दर्ज कराई जाएगी। उधर एसएस केएन शर्मा ने कहा कि अभी काम ज्यादा है। सोमवार से फोर्स स्टेशन पर घूमेगी और इस तरह के कार्यों पर रोक भी लगाएगी।