WR clears muck on tracks

MUMBAI, May 28: Western Railway has nearly doubled the quantity of muck and garbage removed from rail tracks this year to prevent rain waters from flooding and disrupting rail services. “Last year, we removed 26,000 cubic metres of muck, this year we have cleared 45,000 cubic metres,” said WR’s divisional railway manager Pankaj Malviya, briefing newspersons on monsoon precautions being taken in the city.

WR achieved this by running a staggering 220 `Muck Special’ night trains since last month. The muck specials are the railway equivalent of BMC garbage trucks. They comprise an engine and four to eight open rail wagons stopping at various sections.

Each train carries away about 70 to 80 tonnes of garbage. Labourers load bags filled with trash on the train and dump them at predetermined spots at Jogeshwari and Bhayander. After the last monsoon, WR ran 82 muck specials between October ’97 and March this year. The railway has spent Rs 97 lakh on its muck-clearing exercise. An estimated 2,000 cubic metresof muck still remains to be cleared. Asked whether this would ensure tracks would not flood, Malviya said unprecedented rains coupled with high tides could still flood tracks.