Last week, an alert driver averted an accident at Etmadpur railway station near Agra in Uttar Pradesh when a goods train was stopped just a short distance from a train trolley on the same track. According to a memorandum issued by the station master of Etmadpur railway station, the incident took place on July 13 at 2:40 pm when the loop line was being monitored and staff were moving a trolley to check its fitness. When the trolley was on the track, the goods train Etah Special going from Agra Fort to Tundla was diverted from the main line and given the green signal for this loop line.
As the train entered the loop line, the loco pilot saw a train trolley running towards him. He applied the emergency brake and brought the train to a halt about 110 meters before the trolley. The driver took pictures and recorded a video which he later shared with senior officials. “This is an unusual situation that should not happen at all. Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyay, Chief Public Relations Officer, North Central Railway, said, “We were lucky that the speed of the train was just 15 km/h so it was stopped before hitting the trolley.”
“Departmental inquiry is underway and we will take strict action against those whose lapse has led to such a situation,” he added. However, Anand Swaroop, who has been transferred from the charge of Divisional Railway Manager (DRM), Agra on July 17, 2023, downplayed the entire incident and said there was nothing unusual in it. “It is not uncommon. No rules were violated. There is no security issue involved,” Swarup replied to PTI in a WhatsApp message.
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Safety experts say such incidents come under the category of avoidable collisions as per the train accident manual. A safety expert working as a consultant with the railways said, “There are set norms for track supervision with train trolleys and responsibilities have been assigned to all stakeholders to avoid a situation where trolleys and trains ply on the same track.” But due to the lapse of any one party, such a scenario can be created.
Sanjay Pandhi, working president of the Indian Railways Loco Running Men’s Organisation, said, “It seems there was a communication gap between the station master and the train trolley staff. There are rules that trolley operators shall inform the station master before starting and after finishing supervised work, but in this case this norm would not have been followed.”
The office bearers of the All India Track Maintainers Union said that the railway safety norms are very clear that whenever track supervision is carried out, the concerned track will be blocked for movement of trains. “Often, officials take a shortcut and supervise without any block arrangement. In such a situation, these unpleasant incidents happen. This is a very serious issue,” said Anuj Shukla, general secretary of the All India Track Maintainers Union.