Rajnath Moots Proposal for Online FIRs for Railway Crimes

There is no "turf war between RPF and GRP" although there are "complexities" in that regard which need to be looked into, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said today even as he mooted a proposal for online registration of FIRs for railway crimes to deal with the issue of states' jurisdiction in the filing of complaints.

"Law and order is primarily the (individual) states' responsibility. Complaints can be registered online and they can be referred to the state concerned for investigations to be expedited," Singh said at a conference here on railway security where he, however, stressed that there was "no dearth of coordination" in this area.

Though the minister noted that there are some complexities involved in the railway security system, he insisted that "there is no turf war between RPF and GRP. (But) some complexities are there which need to be looked into it".

Admitting that railways was becoming a soft target for Maoists, Singh said, "We have to ensure security for all modes of transportation. A strategy should be worked out to provide security to all forms of transportation."

Railway Protection Force (RPF) is the security wing of the public transporter while Government Railway Police (GRP) is under state government. RPF is empowered to protect railway property whereas GRP is responsible for maintaining law and order on rail premises.

There are complaints of non-cooperation from GRP and lack of coordination between RPF, GRP and state police when it comes to securing railway property.

"India has a federal structure and there are some complexities; but there is (also) a solution to it. There is a solution to every problem, why can't there be a solution for this?" said Singh.

The conference was attended by the Union Ministers, high- ranking state police and railway officials.

Source: Business Standard

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Posted in Railway News

Major Fire at Rail Workshop

A major fire that broke out in the century-old Rail Carriage Repair Workshop on Gadag Road here, created panic among the workers and the public on Wednesday.

The fire was noticed around 12.50 p.m. at the rubbish yard of the workshop, and spread quickly. There were no casualties.

The Fire and Emergency Services personnel rushed to the spot. The operation that went on 8 p.m. and involved 45 personnel and six fire engines. The workshop didn’t have any standard fire-fighting equipment or arrangements, including a fire hydrant, sources said. Deputy Chief Workshop Manager Vijaykumar issued a statement hat the Railways had not incurred any loss due to the fire as the material that got burnt was of zero value. He said the cause of the fire would be investigated.

Source: The Hindu

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Posted in Railway News

Integrated Transportation System for Railways soon, But no Privatisation Suresh Prabhu

Railways is finalising a multi- modal transportation system in coordination with other agencies to serve the passengers in a better way. Acknowledging problems concerning train services, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu today said an integrated policy is needed to address these.

"There are problems and I am aware of it. There is a need for integrated policy to address those problems," he said here while participating in an interactive session organised by Zee news to highlight problems being faced by passengers.

Welcoming suggestions from the public to improve rail system, he said, "Railways should not become an arena of politics. It is an asset of the nation." He said this when told that successive railway ministers had used Railways to further their political interest.

"In order to cater to the needs of passengers, an integrated multi-modal transportations system will be formed. We are working out details in consultation with other concerned agencies," he said.

Though Prabhu did not elaborate on it, the system is perhaps aimed at integrating various modes transportation like bus and Metro service with train schedule to provide end to end service to commuters so that a passenger after alighting from a train gets a convenient transport to reach home. He also highlighted the need for a perspective plan for five years as a mid-term vision to take the national transporter on the growth track.

"Annual Rail Budget is alright. But there is a need for five years perspective plan as a mid-term vision for the Railways. We will come out with such plan," Prabhu said this when asked about the forthcoming Rail Budget.

"It is important to know and identify the problems plaguing Railways. That is why we are bringing out a White Paper identifying those problems and also suggest ways to address those issues," he said.

Prabhu also reiterated that Railways will remain with the government though there will be private investment in the rail sector. "If the private investment is in the interest of passengers and Railways then let it be. But it will remain with the government," he said allaying apprehension against privatisation of Railways in the near future. He, however, said full potential of Railways has not been realised yet.

"The average speed of train is not much. There are so many stoppages which hamper the speed. Rolling stock is also old. Our rolling stocks, signaling system need to be upgraded for realising the full potential of railways," he said. He said there are challenges but these have to be tackled.

"We have to solve them as these are a challenge for the country and not Railways alone."

On the cleanliness issue Prabhu said, "An integrated waste management system should be formed to tackle the issue and we have launched the cleanliness campaign as part of Swachh Bharat Mission." On the financial front he said there is a need for about Rs 6 lakh crore to complete all the pending projects.

Prabhu agreed to a suggestion for creating a super class coach with higher ticket rate for those who can afford. He also agreed to another suggestion that the coaches meant for ladies and disabled persons should not be at the end of the train but at the middle. In order to facilitate easy availability of tickets, Prabhu said many new initiatives like mobile ticketing are being launched in certain routes.

"We want to use the technology in a bigger way to provide better passenger service," he said.

Source: DNA India

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Posted in Railway News

9 Delhi Metro Stations to be Renamed, for a Price

NEW DELHI: The next time you travel by Delhi Metro, recheck the name of the station. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation is in the process of renaming its stations—for a fee. As part of a revenue generating move, DMRC had in July last year introduced the concept of renaming some stations for a sum. The response, says Delhi Metro, has been good and four stations were bid for by private companies.

"Four companies have shown interest in four stations. These are Noida City Center, Noida Sector 18, MG Road and HUDA City Centre," Delhi Metro spokesperson Anuj Dayal said. Uppal Chadha Hi-tech Developers have bid for the Noida stations, Pioneer Publicity for MG Road and Explo Media for HUDA City Centre.

The nine stations available for semi-renaming—as Delhi Metro calls this project—are Golf Course, Botancial Garden, Vaishali, IFFCO Chowk and Guru Dronacharya Metro stations besides the four already bid for. They are available for semi-renaming for ten years, said Dayal. "Plans are afoot for offering Faridabad stations," he added.

The selected bidder or licensee shall have exclusive semi-naming rights at the station. "The licensee will prefix or suffix the brand name with the station name. The company is also granted advertisement rights at the station," added Dayal. Most stations offered for semi-renaming are on the Blue and Yellow lines.

Incidentally, rapid Metro in Gurgaon already follows this practice. It has stations which have been given out to companies that bid the highest for the right. These include Vodafone Belvedere Towers, Indusind Bank Cybercity and Micromax Moulsari Avenue stations.

The colour scheme within the Metro station can also be determined by the company to reflect its branding. "The licensee shall be permitted to use and display the logo of the brand at the selected station. The company will also be entitled to use its logo or brand name at the directional network signage at these stations," added Dayal.

Source: The Times of India

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Posted in Railway News

Vasai Tops Western Railway's Spitting, littering blacklist

If the number of people fined for littering and spitting on Western Railway premises is anything to go by, then Vasai is the spitting and littering capital of WR. The station, among the busiest on WR's suburban network, routinely accounts for about a fourth of all people caught on WR stations for such activities.

On Monday, of the 65 people fined by railway staff for dirtying station premises between Churchgate and Virar, 18 were from Vasai. On Tuesday, when the total number of people fined between Churchgate and Virar jumped to 90, the biggest chunk of offenders — 23 — were from Vasai.

In a year, WR's railway staff, mainly stationmasters and ticket-checkers, make around 4,000 cases under section 198 of the Railway Act and also the newer Indian Railways (penalties for activities affecting cleanliness at railway premises) Rules, 2012. In 2013, its staff made out 4,000 cases on the suburban network, and in 2014, the number went up to 4,700, said officials.

Speaking to dna, Shailendra Kumar, divisional railway manager, WR, said Vasai's infamy as the number one station for spitting and littering will have to be looked into. "It could be because a lot of mainline trains stop there. Nonetheless, the numbers are high and, hence, I will ask the station staff to work towards sensitising commuters there to maintain cleanliness," said Kumar.

A silver lining for railway officials is that big stations on the network — Churchgate, Mumbai Central, Dadar and Bandra — throw up minimal cases daily. However, as a section of officials pointed out, the low numbers from these big stations could be because the railway staff might not be getting time from running the station, particularly keeping a tab on ticketless travellers, to pay attention to commuters indulging in littering and spitting.

According to rules...
The Indian Railways (penalties for activities affecting cleanliness at railway premises) Rules, 2012, levy a fine of Rs500 if you...
Throw or deposit litter in any occupied or unoccupied railway premises or the carriage except in authorised places.
Cook, bathe, spit, urinate, defecate, feed animal or birds, repair or wash vehicles, wash utensils or clothes in any railway premises.
Paste or put up any poster or write or draw anything or matter in any compartment or carriage of the railways or any premises thereof, without any lawful authority.
Indulge in defacing railway property.

Officials authorised to collect fine mentioned in these rules are...
The stationmaster or station manager
An officer not below the rank of ticket collector of the commercial department, or an officer of equivalent rank of the operating department
Any other official(s) authorised by the railway administration for the purpose of implementing these rules

Source: DNA India

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Posted in Railway News

Indian Railways' Rail Neer has few takers in its own premises

The much-touted Rail Neer bottled water, manufactured by Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), has very few takers in its own premises thanks to stall vendors who are reluctant to stock it, since other brands give them a bigger profit margin.

Over 6.57 lakh litres (54,792) crates of Rail Neer is stacked in the IRCTC warehouse at Ambernath. The total requirement of bottled water at major suburban stations on both Central Railway (CR) and Western Railway (WR) is over 11,000 crates. However, hardly 500 Rail Neer bottles are sold on these stations

In August 2014, the IRCTC, an enterprise of Indian Railway, commissioned its packaged mineral water bottling plant at Ambernath, so that they can vouch for the quality of water available in trains and railway premises. The IRCTC had invested more than Rs. 23 crore to develop this plant and is still spending a huge amount for operation and maintenance.

However, six months down the line, the IRCTC have failed to garner sufficient response on suburban stations, apparently because of lack of support from Western and Central Railways (CR). This is irrespective of the railway board directives, which made availability of Rail Neer mandatory at selected suburban stations.

The railway board has directed the railways to make the bottles available CST, Kurla, Thane, Kalyan, Churchgate, Bombay Central, Dadar, Bandra, Andheri and Borivli.

“As per railway board guidelines, keeping Rail Neer bottles is mandatory at all stalls, but vendors are reluctant since local brands give them a higher profit margin. But, their water purity is not guaranteed. Hence, I request railways to conduct a drive and increase the visibility of Rail Neer,” Virendra Singh, group general manager (GGM), Western Region IRCTC, said.

Shailendra Kumar, divisional railway manager (DRM), WR, said, “As per the railway board rule, Rail Neer should get first preference, but if it’s not available, other brands can be sold. We are conducting drives to make sure that Rail Neer is sold first.”

Source: Hindustan Times

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Australian Firms Scout for Business Opportunities in Rail Gear Space in India

Australian firms such UGL, TTG Transportation Technology, Atlas Rail, Track IQ and Aurizon in the railway equipment technology, services and freight operations space are looking for potential business options in the Indian railway market, one of the largest markets globally.

A delegation from Australia met the Railway Board Chairman AK Mital and his colleagues on Tuesday. “There is a great deal of synergy between Australia and India at a time when India is trying to modernise its railways,” Peter Ironmonger, Trade Manager Infrastructure, Austrade, told.

Main Market

Ironmonger said, heavy haul operations through dedicated freight corridor, training and education and energy efficiency are the specific areas where there is scope for learning from Australia. “None of the companies in the global rail market can ignore the Indian rail market,” TTG Transportation’s MD Dale Coleman said. TTG Transportation offers energy efficiency solutions and has deployed its equipment in certain Indian Railway segments. It claims it can help save between 5-6 per cent to as high as 12-13 per cent of energy. TTG Transportation’s customers include heavy haul railway operators including Aurizon of Australia and high-speed trains such as TGV of French railway operator, SNCF. UGL, a rolling stock designer, manufacturer and maintainer, has a presence in India through a tie-up with Texmaco and supplies products to South Africa, Mozambique and the local Indian Railway market.

Bigger Share

“The company gets less than 5 per cent of its business from India as of now, and we are looking to grow it significantly over the next few years,” Alan Beacham, Executive General Manager – Rail & Defence, UGL, said. Atlas Rail, a subsidiary of Marand, has done a small business in India by supplying equipment in the depot for Delhi Metro. “The company was redesigning its products and is now back in India to understand the business and accordingly take call,” Rohan Stocker, CEO, Atlas Rail, said.

Another firm, Track IQ, which provides predictive maintenance solutions, has already provided one installation. “The company had submitted a tender to Indian Railways a few years ago, and is yet to get a final decision,” said David Rennison, MD, Track IQ.

Aurizon, the rail freight operator, sees scope in training for heavy haul operations at a time when Indian Railways developing the dedicated freight corridor, according to James Moutafis, Vice-President, Strategy and Business Development, Aurizon.

Source: Rail News

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