Title - ISS in 2 more stations soon

Improved security in Thiruvananthapuram Central and Ernakulam Junction

The Integrated Security System (ISS) will be implemented in Thiruvananthapuram Central and Ernakulam Junction stations soon as part of Railways’ efforts to step up security, ensure safety of the travelling public, and avert terror attacks.

The state-of-the-art security system will be installed in the two railway stations close on the heels of the commissioning of the ISS in the Kozhikode station. The system is being implemented in 195 stations across the country at a cost of Rs.344.31 crore, and will be managed by the elite Railway Protection Force (RPF).

The ISS will be set up at a cost of Rs.3.3 crore in Thiruvananthapuram and Rs.3.5 crore in Ernakulam.

Under the system, a centralised control room like the modern city police control room will be set up in the retiring room on the first floor of the Central station building to monitor the movement of all those who enter the platforms, yards, circulating area, and station premises through a network of surveillance cameras.

“The work on the control room began on Tuesday, and we hope to commission the ISS here in three months,” Rajnish Kumar Tripathi, Divisional Security Commissioner, RPF, told The Hindu.

The ISS comprises a closed-circuit television surveillance system (CCTV), access control, personal and baggage screening system, explosive detection and disposal system, and system integration.

High-tech gadgets, including vehicle scanners to detect explosive substances in vehicles entering and leaving the station and multi-zone doorframe metal detectors to scan those entering the station, have been proposed.

Vehicle scanners will be installed at the main and second entry in Thiruvananthapuram after modifying the circulating area. In addition, two baggage scanners at the two entries and a parcel scanner that can even detect contraband and explosives will be installed at the parcel office.

The current baggage scanner in the station will be shifted to another station. As many as 79 cameras will be installed on the platform and station premises. Video analytical software and facial recognition will enable the RPF to closely monitor the railway premises.

In Ernakulam Junction, the control room will function from the GCDA building at the second entry to the station. The installation of 67 cameras and the wiring have been completed. Two baggage scanners, two vehicle scanners, and a parcel scanner will be set up. All the work will be completed in a month.

The Divisional Security Commissioner said all unmanned multi-entry and exit points at stations, a major security threat, would be plugged. When the work was over, the RPF personnel would be provided on-job training to take care of the ISS.

Thiruvananthapuram Central and Ernakulam Junction are among the 202 railway stations that have been classified ‘important and sensitive’ on the rail network.