Cops scuttle dacoity on train

The train halted at the signal for nearly fifteen minutes. Senior police staff reached the site within a short time. After the train was allowed to proceed, the railway staff carried out repair works of the signal which got working by 3 a.m.

Taking no chances, railway personnel have been alerted to take stringent steps to prevent recurrence of such incidents. The need for better coordination between the Government Railway Police (GRP) attached to the State Government and the Railway Police Force (RPF) working under the Central Government was urged by the railway sources.

The GRP, it was claimed was understaffed and had almost all the responsibilities of criminal activities in the railway jurisdiction. Moreover, the GRP staff was also deployed for additional security arrangements in various towns on important occasions. The GRP staff has been working in poor conditions with minimum facilities as compared to the RPF, sources said. Although the number of trains had increased over the years, there was no increase in the GRP staff, the sources added.