National

Mumbai Local train about to take a hit during monsoons

Central Railway’s plan for a rainy day includes fewer services and waterproof engines so as to beat waterlogging on tracks this monsoon. This is the first time Central Railway has decided to implement a ‘Sunday time-table’ on high-tide days that will experience heavy showers.

The move aims to reduce the number of trains that will be exposed to the brutality of weather and thus run the risk of being stuck on waterlogged tracks. A ‘Sunday time-table’ means that instead of the full complement of 1,732 services, CR will operate 1,384.

Next in line is the transformation of locomotives so as to make them ‘water-proof’, said CR divisional railway manager S K Jain. These locomotives will be 12-14 inch water-resistant and hence, will have no issues in moving along flooded tracks.

“We plan to adopt the Sunday timetable in the larger interest of commuters. This will ensure that some trains are in reserve so that if a situation of rakes being marooned arises, CR can jump back to normalcy at the earliest,” Jain said.

A section of commuters are, however, worried that reducing services may lead to crowding at stations. Last year’s August 29 downpour left 35 rakes marooned on tracks along Main and Harbour lines, leaving commuters stranded for hours.

Dear Readers,
As an independent media platform, we do not take advertisements from governments and corporate houses. It is you, our readers, who have supported us on our journey to do honest and unbiased journalism. Please contribute, so that we can continue to do the same in future.
Some error occurred

Related posts

National

Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan do well in ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ scheme: Maneka

TestHostEntry

Union Minister Maneka Gandhi today said that Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan have done well in the implementation of the Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ scheme, whereas Kashmir and Bihar have lagged behind in terms of child sex ratio.

The Women and Child Development minister made these remarks while addressing a day-long national conference on ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ (BBBP) here.

“The states that have done best so far are Haryana, Rajasthan and Punjab. These were the worst states (when the programme started) and they have gone from zero to hero. These are macho man states where there is a patriarchal system. They were not even expected to do well. Be it the problem of khaps in Haryana or Punjab’s tandoori chicken culture, they are macho states,” she said.

“Whenever a state or its people feel that they are in war or there is a feeling that there is an atmosphere of war, they (people) are usually hesitant in giving birth to daughters,” the minister said while talking about Kashmir.

The campaign also failed in Bihar because the funds never reached the districts and due to frequent transfers of district magistrates in some districts, she added.

“The money never reached the districts. It reached the state and languished in there. It failed in those districts where DMs were changed in every three months. There was no ownership,” Gandhi said.

The minister said that for the programme to be a success, we have to pull together as a nation.

“We have to pull together as a nation. If we have porous borders like this and people breaking rules in other state and not doing in the other, we have to do something,” Gandhi said.

“In Rajasthan, they exercised strictness under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act but some people crossed over to Madhya Pradesh, got an ultrasound done and got the baby girl aborted,” she said.

Launched in January 2015, the BBBP scheme is implemented in 161 districts. The new 244 districts from across the country will be covered under multi-sectoral intervention.

The nodal officers of 244 districts, state nodal officers and senior officers were present in the day-long conference.

Related posts