2 min readMumbaiNov 10, 2014 12:38 PM IST
First published on: Nov 10, 2014 at 12:38 PM IST
Hawkers are still spotted at Dadar railway station
To curtail incidents of train services getting affected by articles thrown from railway foot-over-bridges (FOB) and road-over-bridges (ROB), Western Railway has developed a no-tolerance policy towards hawkers on its premises.
Articles thrown from FOBs and ROBs on running trains are not only affecting punctuality of the services but it is posing as a threat to the safety of passengers.
Hawkers on railway FOBs make make-shift tents to protect their wares. However, while handling, these sheets drop and fall on the overhead lines below.
A local train was detained for 15 minutes on June 14 at midnight as a cloth from a foot-over bridge fell down and got entangled on the overhead wire and began to burn. For the first time in Mumbai, the RPF declared the FOBs of the Railways and BMC a no-hawkers zone.
Since July, the Western railway has made it a mission to cleanse all the FOBs/ROBs over the Western Railway system. Presently, on the Western Railway suburban corridor, there are 99 FOBs between Churchgate and Virar, of which 70 belongs to the Railways and 29 to BMC. As the hawkers encroach on the railway premises in connivance with RPF personnel, strict actions have been taken against erring staff. Between July and October, 2251 hawkers were booked under section 144 of Railway Act,1989.
kalpana.verma@expressindia.com
Hawkers are still spotted at Dadar railway station
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