City Pulse

More than two months after the stampede at the Elphinstone Road railway station, the spotlight is on the preparedness, or rather the lack of it among the Railway Protection Force (RPF) in dealing with disasters at Mumbai's railway stations.

While commuters are quick to blame the RPF for poor crowd management skills and less number of security personnel during emergencies or peak hours, the RPF blames severe shortages of staff and essential monitoring and communication devices.

An RPF officer of Central Railway, on the condition of anonymity, revealed that four days after the stampede, the Central and Western lines of the Mumbai Suburban railway system conducted an audit to take stock of the current safety status of the stations and trains falling under their jurisdiction. During the audit, the RPF made some suggestions regarding maintenance and security at the stations. 

"We informed them (railway authorities) that we are severely short staffed with the present strength at 1,020, which is not enough to manage crowds at Central Line stations," said the officer. "We have asked the authorities to recruit 467 additional personnel,” he said.

The Central Line of the Mumbai railway network has 24 stations starting from Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) and going up to Kalyan junction. This line includes some of the busiest stations in the city, including Dadar, which caters to long distance trains as well.

The RPF on Western line railway stations faces a similar fate. "We have only 843 personnel. We have asked for 400 more personnel to help us manage the crowds," said another official not wanting to be named. 

The RPF is a central armed police force under the command of the Indian Railways. It has been entrusted to protect passengers and railway property. The RPF has the power to arrest, investigate and prosecute. But what it lacks is modernization and expansion.  

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament had in 2010 called for the reformation, modernization and expansion of the RPF. The PAC recommended that the RPF should be equipped with modern firearms, provided with the legal authority to deal with passenger-related crimes and trained like commandos. It also said the RPF should get an all-India RPF helpline and a dog training centre.

The RPF has also asked for more walkie-talkie sets for its personnel and additional CCTV cameras at some stations.

"We have also asked for 13 more foot over-bridges at major stations on the central line. Five teams were formed for the audit. All suburban railway stations were audited," said the Central Railway RPF officer, but refused to disclose the findings of the audit.

Apart from increasing RPF numbers, RPF personnel are being trained and sensitized to handle crowds at stations after the Elphinstone Road stampede.

“We are conducting awareness camps for everyone. Additional RPF staff has been placed on duty at all stations after the stampede,” said Sunil Udasi, chief public relations officer, Central Railways (Mumbai). “Henceforth, zero tolerance will be shown to hawkers,” he asserts. However, The Central Railways audit report and initial investigation after the stampede at Elphinstone station has revealed that the accident was caused due to panic and narrow foot over bridge. Hawkers were not the only reason.

Amrita Mahimkar, a daily commuter from Borivali to Dadar fears that another stampede is just around the corner. "It is dangerous to get off the train at Dadar during peak hours. The station is jam-packed. People are forced to the very edge of the platform. I wouldn’t be surprised if the next stampede happens at Dadar,” she says.

But, security at Mumbai stations is lax. It is the duty of the RPF to man metal detectors at station entrances. “There are many metal detectors. But not everybody entering stations are frisked properly,” said a railway official at CST, adding that, "Individual frisking will prolong the travel time. How can anyone manage to check each and every person?"

"If people and luggage can be frisked and checked at metro stations, why not at railway stations? We all know that Mumbai stations have a history of terror attacks,” said Sonali Desai, who uses both, the Metro and Mumbai local, to commute.

Picture Courtesy: Mid Day

This article is part of the series that analyses facilities, security and other factors that affect commuters of the Mumbai Suburban Railway, especially after the recent Elphinstone Road railway station tragedy. To view other articles in the series click here.