Twitter
Advertisement

Mumbai rains: Video shows tied cloth used to 'fix' damaged train tracks. railways issue clarification

A video, which shows a man tying a cloth over a damaged railway track to ‘fix’ it has garnered a lot of criticism on social media, with people expressing anger at the alleged high-handedness of the authorities. However, the railways put out a clarification as soon as they saw the video.

Latest News
article-main
FacebookTwitterWhatsappLinkedin

A video, which shows a man tying a cloth over a damaged railway track to ‘fix’ it has garnered a lot of criticism on social media, with people expressing anger at the alleged high-handedness of the authorities. However, the railways put out a clarification as soon as they saw the video.

The video, which comes from Mumbai that has been victim of torrential rains since Sunday, highlights how a train passes over the damaged track on the Harbour Line between Govandi and Mankhurd on the outskirts of Navi Mumbai.

The damage was reported between Mumbai's suburban Govandi and Mankhurd stations on the Harbour Line around 6:30 pm yesterday, when rain had crippled the city's train traffic. The track was repaired within half an hour, but the video that emerged online provoked shock and anger.

The video showed the cloth being tied firmly around the damaged portion, and a train passing over it. TV channels highlighted the footage, dwelling on the disaster they said was waiting to happen.

When Central Railway officials spotted the video, they immediately put out a clarification. In a statement, the central railways said the video was not accurate, that the cloth was not to bridge the gap but to "mark" the place for fixes. "The fish plate was intact with tight bolts. The train passed in presence of permanent way official at restricted speed. Cloth wasn't put to bridge gap, but to mark for replacement since paint doesn't stick in rain," the statement said.

Not everyone is convinced. Samir Jhaveri, a Right to Information (RTI) activist, has demanded an inquiry by the Commissioner of Railway Safety.

Services on all three lines of the suburban railway in Mumbai -- Western, Central and Harbour -- were severely hit by torrential rain on Tuesday.

With PTI Inputs

Find your daily dose of news & explainers in your WhatsApp. Stay updated, Stay informed-  Follow DNA on WhatsApp.
Advertisement

Live tv

Advertisement
Advertisement