New Delhi: In view of the festival season rush of passengers at stations, the Indian Railways has made elaborate security arrangements at the stations across the country for better crowd management and to avoid any untoward incident.
The railway officials told ETV Bharat several safety measures have been taken up to keep a strict vigil and monitor round-the-clock at the stations for the safety of the travelers.
Railway Protection Force (RPF) and Government Railway Police (GRP) personnel have been deployed in and around the stations and as many CCTV cameras installed for surveillance, Divisional Security Commissioner of RPF informed, they said.
According to the Railway officials, crowd controlling measures by forming a queue at the terminus stations under the supervision of RPF personnel for orderly entry of passengers in unreserved coaches is being ensured.
Additional RPF personnel have been deployed at major stations to ensure security of passengers. The officers are deployed on Emergency Duty at stations to ensure smooth running of trains.
“We have deployed additional RPF teams to keep watch on suspected persons and these teams often move from one station to another to maintain crowds,” Divisional Security Commissioner of North Central Railways told ETV Bharat.
Elaborating the security arrangements at the stations, Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyay, Chief Public Relations Officer, Northern Railways said, "designated holding areas will be created at important stations to prevent overcrowding at platforms. In these holding areas, various arrangements like installation of big screens for train position and infotainment will be done. Additional special ticket counters will be made operational, and RPF Helpdesks will be set up, deployment of additional RPF battalions including women staff at platforms and in trains to regulate the crowd has been done."
For better crowd management, manilla ropes are used to regulate the crowd at platforms, RPF personnel are using Hand held loudspeakers to regulate the entry of passengers in General coaches.
The Railway officials pointed out strict measures were being implemented to prevent unauthorized entry into reserved coaches, curb the carrying of inflammable materials, and address issues like smoking and littering in trains and station premises.
Adequate counters for food, snacks and meals have been operational at platforms, and timely announcements regarding the running of special trains and extra coaches are being made at stations, the officials said.
To ensure the smooth functioning of operations, the Railway has directed station authorities to avoid last-minute platform changes to avoid unnecessary chaos, they added.
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