RailEnquiry

  Indian Railways News  / Angamaly-Kalady rail line to be commissioned by April

Though the Sabari rail project is yet to see the light of the day, the Railway officials in the state hope to commission the Angamaly-Kalady stretch by next April.According to Dani Thomas, Chief Administrative Officer, Kerala, the Railway Board, at a meeting held last week asked the officials to complete all rail-related works between Angamaly and Kalady. “We have nearly finished the land acquisition in the area. Railway lines will be placed along the eight-km stretch. With the estimated `15 crore, we expect to commission the line soon,” Thomas said.Though Union Minister of State for Railways K H Muniyappa had stated last year that the Angamaly-Kalady stretch would be commissioned in 2012, the paucity of funds forced the Railways to halt the project for a while.Meanwhile, other officials with the Railways said that there is pressure from various sides to cancel plan to set up a railway station at Kalady. However, Dani Thomas denied this.He added that if there were any funds left over, a bit of land acquisition in the Kalady-Perumbavoor region could be initiated. “It will be possible to start land acquisition work in this area only next year,” said Thomas.Presently, payment is also due despite the surveys being completed along the Kalady-Perumbavoor stretch.The Railway Board had revised the estimate of the Angamaly-Sabarimala Railway Project from `1,234 crore to `1,566 crore.

Meanwhile, the Railway Board is remaining adamant in its decision that the state government should fund half of the project. “The state government has not yet shown any interest in funding the project especially because of the huge investment involved. Land acquisition will always remain a big problem  in Kerala. The Railways has no reason to continue the project because it is not beneficial.

“However, considering the potential benefits to the residents of Muvattapuzha, Thodupuzha and Pala, the Railways has not cancelled the project,” he said.The railways has drastically changed the alignment of the Sabari Rail Project, opting to draw the line till Erumely instead of Azhutha.

  Indian Railways News  / Bandaru Dattatreya seeks hike in railway safety fund

Hyderabad : A demand for raising the limit of the Special Railway Safety Fund (SRSF) to Rs 50,000 crore from Rs 27,000 crore in the wake of yesterday's train mishap in Andhra Pradesh has been made by former minister of state for railways Bandaru Dattatreya.

  Indian Railways News  / TRAIN SERVICES RESUMED

Train services have been resumed fully in East Coast Railway jurisdiction at about 16.30hrs. Due to power failure in Eastern Circle, train services in East Coast Railway jurisdiction were disrupted for about o­ne & half hours. As a result, 13 mail express trains like Puri-New Delhi Neelachal Express, Mysore-Howrah Express, Secunderabad-Howrah Falaknuma Express, Tirupathy-Santragachhi Express, Villupuram-Kharagpur Express, Dhauli Express, Pondichery-Bhubaneswar Express and five local passenger trains were stranded enroute at different stations in ECoR jurisdiction. Train services were partially normalized in Palasa-Bhadrak section at 14.45hrs.However, 18413 Paradeep-Puri Express and 22853 Shalimar-Visakhapatnam Express have been cancelled today from Paradeep & Shalimar respectively. Similarly, 22854 Visakhapatnam Shalimar Express scheduled to leave Visakhapatnam tomorrow will remain cancelled. These apart, local passenger trains like Cuttack-Palasa passenger, Cuttack-Paradeep passenger, Puri-Angul passenger, Puri-Talcher passenger, Howrah-Bhadrak-Howrah passenger trains have been cancelled today.

18302 Puri-Sambalpur Inter City Express and 18425 Puri-Durg Express will stop at all the stations between Puri & Angul stations for the convenience of the passengers.

  Indian Railways News  / - पॉवर संकट-नौ पैसेंजर रद्द,शताब्दी सहित कई ट्रेनें घंटों लेट -

अम्बाला। कानपुर के निकट तड़के नार्थ ग्रिड फेल होने से रेल परिचालन बुरी तरह से प्रभावित हो गया । अम्बाला-दिल्ली रेलमार्ग पर दौड़ रही ट्रेन जहां थी वहीं खड़ी हो गई। ग्रिड फैलियर का असर रेल पर जबरदस्त तरीके से पड़ा है। यात्री ट्रेनों के अलावा माल गाडिय़ां भी बीच रास्ते फंस गई।  स्टेशनों से डीजल इंजन भेज इलेक्ट्रिक ट्रेनों को बीच मार्ग से खींचा गया जबकि मालगाडिय़ों के डीजल इंजनों से कई ट्रेनों को खींचा गया। ग्रिड फैलियर से सुबह अम्बाला-दिल्ली रेलमार्ग पर परिचालन लगभग ठप हो गया था। रेलवे को अम्बाला से दिल्ली व नंगल डैम सेक्शन पर चलने वाली नौ पैसेंजर ट्रेन रद्द करनी पड़ी जबकि अमृतसर-कटिहार एक्सप्रेस का मार्ग बदलना पड़ा।  इसके अलावा स्वर्ण शताब्दी, कालका-दिल्ली शताब्दी सहित अन्य महत्वपूर्ण ट्रेन निर्धारित समय से घंटों देरी से चली। यात्रियों पर इसकी मार पड़ी। इंक्वायरी आफिस में पूछताछ के लिए यात्रियों की लाइनें लगी जबकि शताब्दी एक्सप्रेस समय पर नहीं आने के कारण कई यात्रियों ने टिकट भी रिफंड कराए। सुबह साढ़े नौ बजे तक हालात सामान्य हुए तो परिचालन में कुछ सुधार हुआ, लेकिन असर देर दोपहर तक रहा। एक्सप्रेस ट्रेनें निर्धारित समय से घंटों लेट चल रही थी। परेशान यात्रियों को बसों व टैक्सियों का सहारा लेकर गंतव्य तक जाना पड़ा।

  Indian Railways News  / Innocence lost on rly tracks Young ragpickers risk lives to eke out a living

Jammu : It is a daily race for survival for child ragpickers at the Jammu railway station, as they not only scavenge garbage for a living but also face the constant threat to their lives from passing trains.While child begging and scavenging is banned under the law, hundreds of children, some as young as five, hunt for water bottles, polythene bags, cans and other leftovers by passengers.Arising at dawn, these children start their rounds of the railway platform bare feet, carrying heavy gunny bags containing the pickings of the day. All recyclable garbage is collected and sorted. “They fill their bags with paper, plastic, bottles, metals and discarded food thrown out by passengers. With their little earnings, they rush to the nearest wayside shop to ease their hunger. If the day’s collection is bad, they sometimes resort to stealing for survival,” says Nadeem Qadri, who runs an NGO.The railway authorities and the police seem to have ignored their presence at the platforms and failed to take steps to rehabilitate them. At times, they are exploited by organised gangs.The organic waste, if consumed, poses a serious threat to their lives due to the growth of microbial pathogens.“Direct handling of solid waste can also result in various types of infectious and chronic diseases,” said Dr Sujata Pandita, a city-based doctor. “Exposure to hazardous waste can affect human health. Children are more vulnerable to these pollutants,” she adds.Direct exposure to such waste can lead to diseases, as the release of chemical waste into the environment results in chemical poisoning.Many studies have been carried out in various parts of the world to establish a connection between health and hazardous waste.In the absence of strong laws, most children also indulge in begging. The railway officials were not available for comments.

LIFE ON THE LINE
Risk acquiring skin, blood infections due to direct contact with waste, and from infected wounds Eye, respiratory infections due to exposure to dust, especially during landfill operations Diseases resulting from bites of animals feeding on the waste Intestinal infections that are transmitted by flies feeding on the waste DAILY TOIL

Arising at dawn, these children, some as young as five, start their rounds of the railway platform bare feet, carrying heavy gunny bags containing the pickings of the day