Latest news with #Railways'
Express Tribune
20 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Passengers decry poor rail services
Pakistan Railways continues to fall woefully short of its pledges of reform and modernisation, with trains failing to run on schedule, passengers being denied facilities commensurate with the fares charged, and the maintenance of passenger coaches in a deplorable condition. The so-called air-conditioned parlour class offers little more than a token cooling system, with exorbitant fares, broken seats reminiscent of rickshaws, filthy washrooms, substandard food, and widespread overchargingall of which have laid bare the hollowness of the Railways' claims of improvement. Conditions in other classes are reported to be even worse. During The Express Tribune correspondent's journey on the 7am railcar from Rawalpindi to Lahore on August 15, a Rs2,260 ticket for the air-conditioned parlour class afforded scant comfort. The seats, instead of being cushioned with soft foam, were hard, torn, and akin to rickshaw benches. Many foldable food tables were broken, the cooling system failed to function effectively, and the maintenance of seats, flooring, and washrooms was virtually non-existent. Two passengers were billed Rs1,900 for a poor-quality breakfast which, owing to the early morning departure, travellers were compelled to purchasean opportunity vendors appeared eager to exploit. The railcar, scheduled to depart Rawalpindi at 7:03am, reached Lahore only at 12:30pm, taking five and a half hours. Within the AC parlour coach, drinking water and soft drinks were sold at double their market price. Such conditions stand in stark contrast to the much-vaunted promises of reform, modernisation, and enhanced passenger services. The return journey from Lahore to Rawalpindi, advertised as a non-stop service, proved equally disappointing. The train, scheduled to leave at 6pm, departed at 6:14pm and arrived in Rawalpindi at 11:14pm, having been halted three times to allow other trains to pass. Despite repeated assurances by successive governments of timely departures, punctual arrivals, and upgraded facilities, the situation on the ground remains unchanged. Even after high-profile events staged by the Ministry of Railways and attended by the Federal Minister for Railways, passengers continue to endure hardship. Railway regulations explicitly prioritise passenger comfort, quality of service, punctual train operations, proper coach maintenance, and safety. Yet these standards remain unachieved. When contacted, Railways Public Relations Officer Sohail Baloch confirmed that the breakfast charges and railcar fares were officially approved but offered no explanation for the poor food quality, the lack of comfortable seating, the ineffective cooling system, the appalling condition of washrooms, or the persistent delays in departures from both Rawalpindi and Lahore.
News18
01-07-2025
- Sport
- News18
Elite Women's Boxing: Railways Clinch Team Title As Nitu, Lovlina Shine
Last Updated: RSPB led the Elite Women's Boxing Tournament with nine medals, including three golds. Winners included Nitu Ghanghas, Lovlina Borgohain, and Saweety Boora. Railways Sports Promotion Board (RSPB) emerged as the top-performing unit by securing nine medals, including three gold, as the Elite Women's Boxing Tournament that concluded on Tuesday. The final day featured notable performances from World and Commonwealth Games gold medallist Nitu Ghanghas (Haryana), Olympic medallist Lovlina Borgohain (TOPS), and world champion Saweety Boora (SAI NCOE), who all won titles in their respective weight categories. The SAI NCOE combined team earned seven medals, including two gold, while the TOPS Core & Development squad clinched three gold, completing the podium. Railways' gold medallists included Babirojsana Chanu (57kg), who achieved a dominant 5:0 victory over Kamaljeet Kaur of All India Police, Prachi (60kg), and Jyoti (51kg), who was awarded the win after Telangana's Nikhat Zareen withdrew due to injury. RSPB also collected three silver medals and three bronze across various weight categories. World champion Nitu won the 48kg final with a 4:1 split decision over Chanchal (SAI N), while Saweety triumphed over Railways' Alfiya with a commanding 5:0 unanimous victory. Lashu Yadav's withdrawal gave Lovlina a walkover win, while Preeti secured the gold medal in the 54kg division. What Lovlina Borgohain Said After Winning? 'Winning gold at the Elite Women's Boxing Tournament is the perfect start to my preparations before I head overseas to begin the next phase of my training for the Women's World Boxing Championships in September. The competition here was intense and facing such high-caliber opponents has only strengthened my resolve," said Lovlina. The remaining gold medals were distributed among SAI NCOE, TOPS, and state units. Former Youth world champion Ankushita Boro (65kg) also secured a top-podium finish with a hard-fought 3:2 win over Railways' Shashi. SAI NCOE's Ritika (80+kg) and Delhi's Shivani (70kg) each earned a gold medal. The gold and silver medallists from the tournament will now have the opportunity to join the national camp in Patiala. First Published:
News18
22-06-2025
- Sport
- News18
Senior National Aquatic Championships: Benedicton Rohit Shatters Best Indian Time In 100m Butterfly
Last Updated: The TN swimmer's effort of 52.57s shattered Virdhawal Khade's Best Indian Time of 52.77s set in the year 2009, while also bettering Sajan Prakash's national record of 53.24s. Swimmer Benedicton Rohit registered the best Indian time in the men's 100m butterfly event on Sunday at the Senior National Aquatic Championships. The Tamil Nadu swimmer's effort of 52.57s shattered Virdhawal Khade's Best Indian Time of 52.77s set all the way back in the year 2019, while also bettering Sajan Prakash's national record of 53.24s. With his record-breaking swim, Rohit also achieved the 'B' qualification time for the World Championship scheduled to be held in Singapore from July 27. Prakash, representing All India Police, secured silver with a time of 53.51 seconds, while Railways' Bikram Changmai claimed bronze in 54.35 seconds. In the women's 100m butterfly, Odisha's Shristi Upadhaya and Railways' Astha Choudhary shared the top spot on the podium, both clocking an identical time of 1:03.50. Karnataka swimmer Dhinidhi Desinghu (1:03.52) finished a close third. Karnataka's Aneesh S Gowda edged past Prakash in a thrilling men's 200m freestyle final, clocking 1:50.85 to win by just 0.01 seconds. Prakash timed 1:50.86 for silver, while Shoan Ganguly (1:51.60), also from Karnataka, bagged bronze. The Karnataka quartet of Tanish Mathew, Chinthan Shetty, Dharshan S, and Aneesh Gowda won gold in the men's 4x200m freestyle relay with a time of 7:40.90. Maharashtra's team of Atharva Sankpal, Shubham Dhaygude, Om Satam, and Rishabh Das clocked 7:44.98 for silver. Services' quartet — Unni Krishnan S, Adarsh S, Gotteti Sampath Kumar Yadav, and Anand A.S. — took bronze in 7:46.29. Other winners on the day included Delhi's Bhavya Sachdeva (women's 400m freestyle), Railways' Harshitha Jayaram (women's 200m breaststroke), and Tamil Nadu's Danush Suresh (men's 200m breaststroke). In swimming, a timing is considered a national record only when it has been achieved at the National Aquatics Championships. Therefore, the timings clocked in other meets are termed the best Indian time. (With Inputs From PTI) First Published:
Hindustan Times
22-06-2025
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
Benedicton Rohit clocks best Indian time in 100m butterfly at Nationals
Bhubaneswar, Tamil Nadu swimmer B. Benedicton Rohit set the pool ablaze on the opening day of the Senior National Aquatic Championship, smashing the the 'Best Indian Time' in the men's 100m butterfly to clinch the gold here on Sunday. HT Image Rohit clocked an impressive 52.57s at the indoor Aquatic Centre at the Kalinga Stadium. With his performance, he erased the long-standing Best Indian Time of 52.77s, set by Asian Games medallists Virdhawal Khade in 2009 while also eclipsing the previous national record of 53.24s held by two-time Olympian Sajan Prakash. With the record breaking swim, Rohit also achieved the 'B' qualification time for the World Championship scheduled to be held in Singapore from July 27. Prakash, representing All India Police, settled for silver with a time of 53.51s, while Railways' Bikram Changmai claimed bronze in 54.35s. In the women's 100m butterfly, Odisha's Shristi Upadhaya and Railways' Astha Choudhary shared the top step of the podium, both clocking identical 1:03.50. Karnataka swimmer Dhinidhi Desinghu finished a close third. Karnataka's Aneesh S Gowda edged past Prakash in a thrilling men's 200m freestyle final, clocking 1:50.85 to win by just 0.01 seconds. Prakash timed 1:50.86 for silver, while Shoan Ganguly , also from Karnataka, bagged bronze. The Karnataka quartet of Tanish Mathew, Chinthan Shetty, Dharshan S, and Aneesh Gowda won gold in the men's 4x200m freestyle relay with a time of 7:40.90. Maharashtra's team of Atharva Sankpal, Shubham Dhaygude, Om Satam, and Rishabh Das clocked 7:44.98 for a silver Services' quartet — Unni Krishnan S, Adarsh S, Gotteti Sampath Kumar Yadav, and Anand A.S. — took bronze in 7:46.29. Other winners on the day included Delhi's Bhavya Sachdeva , Railways' Harshitha Jayaram , Tamil Nadu's Danush Suresh . In swimming, a timing is considered a national record only when it has been achieved at the National Aquatics Championships. Hence, the timings clocked in other meets are called the best Indian time. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Mint
14-06-2025
- General
- Mint
Warped priorities: What Mumbai's suburban railway commuter deaths say about India's development dreams
On 9 June, 12 commuters fell off a suburban train near Thane as it jerked and swayed while navigating sharp curves. Four of them died, while the rest were severely injured. They were the latest victims of Mumbai's ageing and immensely overcrowded suburban railway network, an essential but deadly lifeline for the city's working class. Between 2005 and July 2024, a staggering 51,802 people died on Mumbai's suburban railways, according to an affidavit filed in the Bombay High Court by the Western and Central Railways, which together operate the city's three suburban networks. That's an average of seven deaths per day for nearly two decades, making it the deadliest suburban railway system in the world by a wide margin. Kolkata, with an average of 800 deaths per year, is second, while Jakarta, with around 100 deaths per year, is a very distant third. One could argue that not all these deaths are the fault of the Railways. This is true, but only to some extent. A few hundred die every year on trains or at stations due to natural causes. Another couple of hundred commit suicide on the tracks every year, on average. But these deaths still account for less than a fifth of the total fatalities. The rest are all accidents, caused by huge overcrowding, ageing and vastly stressed infrastructure, and a shocking absence of basic safety systems. Mumbai's suburban railway system is just 28 years shy of celebrating its bicentenary. The oldest suburban network in Asia is also one of the least modernised. Despite the astronomical increase in loads, the Colonial era infrastructure is essentially still in place. This led to incidents like the 2017 Elphinstone foot overbridge (FOB) stampede, which killed 23 commuters at rush hour. The causes of death are tragically predictable: commuters falling off moving trains, getting knocked off by electric poles while hanging out of overcrowded coaches, run over while crossing tracks due to poor access and track crossing FOBs. Several also get electrocuted while travelling atop packed trains, or are run over after slipping between the platform and the train. What's worse, the root causes and solutions for all these problems are known. Automatic locking doors on coaches will prevent people from hanging precariously from them. Boundary walls and fencing could prevent, or at least greatly reduce, the crossing of railway tracks. Better-located and wider FOBs, escalators, and elevators at stations could also prevent track crossings and stampedes. Vestibules between coaches would help redistribute crowding. CCTV in platforms and all coaches, with a 'talk back' facility to alert the motorman, would enhance safety while travelling. Extending the Railways' anti-collision system, Kavach, to the suburban network could avert collisions and accidents. Widening and lengthening platforms will reduce overcrowding and accidental falls onto the tracks at stations. Installing automatic platform screen doors in platforms, like in metro stations, will eliminate this. Altering track geometry at known accident spots will eliminate accidents like what happened earlier this week. In addition, a cyclical timetable, which commuter groups have been petitioning for since 2012, could increase frequency during peak hours by 30% and reduce overcrowding. All it needs is an enhanced signalling and a software change to the existing train control system. Also Read: Cabinet approves two multitracking projects for Indian Railways Neglected lifeline These are not futuristic, expensive dreams. They are 20th-century solutions that remain unimplemented a quarter of the way into the 21st century. The Railways already has the technology to implement all these solutions. It's not that the money doesn't exist or cannot be found. Over the past decade, based on available Budget numbers, between ₹5,000 and ₹6,000 crore have been allocated to the suburban railway network in Mumbai. Western and Central, suburban networks, meanwhile, earn almost ₹7,000 crore per year for the Railways. Governments also have no problem finding the money for projects that are seen as 'modern" and 'prestigious". For example, Mumbai's metro rail projects have a cumulative allocation of ₹65,000 crores. The two completed lines carry less than one-seventh of the load of the suburban network. The passenger fare is also vastly different. The average ride cost per kilometre is just 11 paise on the suburban network; it is over ₹2 per km even on the longest section of the metro. Also Read: Cabinet approves two multitracking projects for Indian Railways The real problem is that the users of the suburban railway – Mumbai's hard-working poor, the working class and the voiceless middle class – have no political agency. Their daily deaths have become so mundane that they cease to evoke any horror or anger. On most days, they no longer even register in the local news, let alone national headlines. This indifference and apathy are a blot on the world's fourth biggest economy, and India's aspiration to be recognised as a developed and prosperous middle-income country. It is a telling comment on our priorities. Also Read: Railways to take up Mission Amrit Sarovar projects, convert burrowed areas alongside tracks to artificial ponds
