The entire force of 4,000 police personnel at 17 police stations, covering more than 135 railway stations on both the central and western lines have just eight AK-47 rifles.
Mumbai railway police commissionerate, the first such in the country, responsible for the security of seven million commuters every day has no sophisticated arms or ammunition, even after the November 26 terror attack at CST left 56 dead, including four foreigners.
The entire force of 4,000 police personnel at 17 police stations, covering more than 135 railway stations on both the central and western lines have just eight AK-47 rifles.
And this after a series of terror attacks on trains, including bomb blasts and militants opening fire. All promises by the state government’s home department have proved false.
Mumbai Railway police commissioner Tukaram A Chavan refused to comment on the matter. The government railway police, which is a joint body of the Maharashtra government and the Indian Railways, is primarily responsible for maintaining the law and order in stations and on trains and the security of passengers.
The Indian Railways have a parallel force, the Railway Protection Force, run by the ministry of railways for security of station premises and railway property.
“This is really shocking,” Subhash Gupta of the National Railway Users Consultative Committee of the ministry of railways said.
“How can such an important body have no ammunition? It seems we have not learnt anything despite so many attacks and killings.” Gupta said that the state government talks of criminal action against the railways for not completing projects. “But who will take action against the state home ministry?”
The railways have been lax with security. Metal detectors at stations are broken, CCTVs do not function, and recently DNA had highlighted the rate menace at CST, because of which the baggage X Ray machines do not work. The rats had chewed up the wires.
“Why can’t our authorities understand?” Madhu Kotian of Mumbai Railway Pravasi Sangh said. “I will stage protests against the home ministry. They are playing with peoples’ lives. Who’ll take the responsibility?”
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