Lok Sabha Question No. 4684 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-03-24
Subject: Safety in Rail Travel
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Sanjay Bhatia

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4684 TO BE ANSWERED ON 24.03.2021

## SAFETY IN RAIL TRAVEL

## † 4684.    SHRI SANJAY BHATIA:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has worked out any innovative policy to make rail travel more secure and comfortable and make railway system more profitable and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether  the  Indian  Railways  is  contemplating  to  implement token/card  purchase  and  recharge  system  prevalent  in  metros being operated successfully in metro cities of the country so that a  feasible  solution  to  the  problem  of  heavy  congestion  of travel/platform ticket buyers at railway stations is possible;
- (c) if so, the details thereof; and
- (d) if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, COMMERCE & INDUSTRY AND CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

(SHRI PIYUSH GOYAL)

- (a) to (d): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

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STATEMENT  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a) TO (d) OF UNSTARRED  QUESTION  NO.  4684  BY  SHRI  SANJAY  BHATIA  TO  BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 24.03.2021 REGARDING SAFETY IN RAIL TRAVEL

(a): Indian Railways is committed to provide secure, safe and comfortable journey to all its passengers. Provision of security and other facilities to passengers is a continuous process and every endeavour is made  to  ensure  these  to  railway  passengers.  Steps  taken  by  Indian Railways to make rail travel more secure and comfortable for passengers, are listed below:-

-  On vulnerable and identified routes/sections, trains are escorted by Railway Protection Force in addition to trains escorted by Government Railway Police of different States daily.
-  Surveillance is kept through Close Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras  provided  at  686  railway  stations  and  in  2931  coaches. Integrated  Security  System  (ISS)  has  been  provided  to  improve surveillance mechanism over 164 railway stations.
-  Station  Security  Plan  is  being  implemented  at  major  stations  in  a phased  manner  to  enhance  access  control,  improve  surveillance and  achieve  synergy  between  deployment  of  various  security agencies on the station.
-  Regular  liaisoning  with  the  State  Police/GRP  authorities,  Central and  State  Intelligence  agencies  and  Civil  authorities  at  all  levels for prevention and detection of crime is in place.
-  To  facilitate  faster  redressal  of  all  types  of  grievances,  a  single railway helpline number 139 for inquiry, complaints and assistance, is operational over Indian Railways. Ministry of Railways has rolled out RailMadad also.
-  Emergency  Talk Back System and Closed Circuit Television Surveillance Cameras have been provided in ladies compartments/coaches of all newly manufactured Electrical Multiple Unit (EMU) and Air-conditioned rakes of Kolkata Metro.

-  Customer services are facilitated by issuing of reserved/unreserved tickets  through  Passenger  Reservation  System  (PRS),  Unreserved Ticketing System (UTS), Automatic Ticket Vending Machine (ATVM) through website of Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation  (IRCTC)  &  RAILCONNECT  Mobile  App,  UTSONMOBILE app,  Yatri  Ticket  Suvidha  Kendras  (YTSK),  Jan  Sadharan  Ticket Booking Sewaks (JTBS). Waiting list of the trains is monitored on regular basis and to meet the additional demand during peak rush periods, special trains are run, load of existing trains is augmented subject to operational feasibility.
-  It  has  been  decided  to  proliferate/induct  modern  Linke  Hofmann Busch (LHB) coaches and convert trains operating with conventional  coaches  by  LHB  coaches,  in  a  phased  manner. Production  Units of Indian  Railways  are  producing  only  LHB coaches  from  2018-19  onwards.  Presently,  647  pairs  of  trains  on Indian Railways System are being operated with LHB coaches.
-  State-of-the-Art Vande Bharat services have been introduced between New Delhi - Varanasi and New Delhi- Shri Mata Vaishno Devi  Katra.  These  trains  have  ultra  modern  features  like  quick acceleration, on board infotainment and Global Positioning System (GPS) based  passenger  information  system,  automatic  sliding doors, retractable footsteps and Zero discharge vacuum bio toilets etc.
- 
- Various  premium  train  services  like  Humsafar,  Tejas,  Antyodaya, Utkrisht  Double  Decker  Air-conditioned  Yatri  (UDAY),  Mahamana and coaches like Deen Dayalu and Anubhuti, which have upgraded interiors / exteriors and improved passenger amenities, have been introduced in service in various train services over Indian Railways.
-  Recently, Vistadome coaches on LHB platform providing panoramic view to enjoy the scenic beauty of the places by passengers have been manufactured with several modern features/amenities.

-  Indian Railway had also launched Project Utkrisht in April 2018 in order to improve the condition of ICF type coaches running in Mail / Express  trains.  Upgradation  of  447  rakes  of  Mail  /  Express  trains has been completed till December 2020 under Project Utkrisht.
-  Under Project Swarn, 65 rakes of Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains have been  upgraded  across  multiple  dimensions,  which  include  coach interiors, toilets, onboard cleanliness, staff behaviour, linen, etc.
-  63  smart  coaches  with  ultra  modern  features  like  Smart  Public address and passenger information system, Smart HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and  Air Conditioning system), Smart  security  and surveillance system etc. have been manufactured and introduced in service.
-  Conversion of End-On-Generation (EOG) trains into Head-OnGeneration  (HOG)  trains  has  been  done  to  reduce  noise  and  air pollution at stations and in trains. This is expected to significantly reduce the consumption of fossil fuels.
-  Conventional lighting in coaches is being replaced with modern and energy efficient Light Emitting Diode (LED) lights.

(b) to (d):  Automatic Ticket Vending Machines (ATVMs) and Cash-Coin & Smart  Card  operated  (Versatile)  Ticket  Vending  Machines  (CoTVMs)  of Indian Railways are available at Railway stations through which unreserved tickets can be sourced using smart card or cash. In addition, the passengers can also book the unreserved tickets through UTSONMOBILE App and reserved tickets through the IRCTC website as well as the Rail Connect App.

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