The highest number of these passengers is in Central Railway's Mumbai division – 5,454 passengers – followed by Western Railway's Mumbai division at 3,742 passengers.
If there was ever a clear reason why trains require automatic closed doors, this is it. Statistics collated by the Untoward Incident Cell of the Railways in Mumbai shows that the maximum number of injuries to passengers is from them falling from running trains. In fact in the past five years (2011-2015), of the 20,258 passengers who were left injured due to untoward incidents in the Railways in Mumbai, Pune and Solapur division, a sizeable 9,856 passengers – about 49% – were those who fell from trains.
The highest number of these passengers is in Central Railway's Mumbai division – 5,454 passengers – followed by Western Railway's Mumbai division at 3,742 passengers. This is, of course, because between them WR and CR run about 3,000 local trains each overloaded by as much as 58%.
The largest passenger survey by the Railways a couple of years ago showed that during peak hours, there are 5,560 passengers in a 12-coach train with a capacity of 3,522 passengers. A train's ideal capacity of 3,522 is arrived at by assuming two people stand for every one passenger seated. A normal 12-coach rake has 1,174 seats. Experts believe overloading of anything above 15% is inhuman.
Falling down from trains is the second major cause of death as well. Out of the 21,565 passengers who died in these untoward accidents in these four divisions between 2011 and 2015, a total of 4,637 passengers – or about 21.5% – died after falling from running – and almost surely – overcrowded trains.
Crossing tracks and getting knocked down, however, continues to be the biggest killer on the tracks. Of the 21,565 passengers who got killed in train incidents, 11,965 – or about 55.4% – died due to being knocked down by a train while they were crossing the tracks.
The plan to have automatic closed door mechanism on Mumbai's locals has so far been a non-starter. In March last year, WR tested this system in one of its women's coaches but removed it soon after due to technical glitches. This July it again allotted Rs 1.3 crore to fit 22 such automatic doors in three coaches.
The accidents in numbers:
Accidental Injuries (between 2011 and 2015)
Division Line Cross Fell Down Other Total
1) Mumbai (CR) 1641 5454 3558 11087
2) Mumbai (WR) 982 3742 1840 6840
3) Pune (CR) 235 637 365 1263
4) Solapur (CR) 41 23 2 68
Accidental Deaths (between 2011 and 2015)
Division Line Cross Fell Down Other Total
1) Mumbai (CR) 6055 2767 2228 11119
2) Mumbai (WR) 3487 1307 1193 6112
3) Pune (CR) 1476 401 939 2846
4) Solapur (CR) 947 162 368 1488
(source Untoward Incident Cell/Railways and government railway police/ state government)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Railways-Accidents")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}