With the increasing summer rush on long-distance trains, there has been a corresponding increase in incidents of pulling of the alarm chain on Central Railway. In the last three weeks, 157 cases of chain pulling have been registered in the CR’s Mumbai Division alone.
“Railways have provided an alarm chain pulling (ACP) option in suburban and mail/ express trains only for use during emergencies. Of late, it is seen that passengers of long-distance trains are resorting to ACP for frivolous reasons like arriving late, not being able to board the train because of excessive luggage, alighting/boarding at intermediate stations etc” said a CR official.
The incidents seem to occur just when the train is ready to move from the station. “In most cases, we have found that either someone was left behind or because of extensive luggage, was unable to board the train in a timely manner,” said an official who has investigated several such incidents in the last few weeks.
“Central Railways Mumbai Division is keeping close tabs on such unreasonable ACP incidents. It has registered 157 cases of unreasonable ACP cases for the period April 1, 2022, to April 20, 2022. Out of these, about 108 passengers have been prosecuted and an amount of Rs 47,200 has been realized in penalties,” he said.
As per the Indian Railways Act, pulling the emergency chain without a valid reason is an offence and attracts a jail term of three months or a fine up to Rs 1,000.
“The act of ACP in a train not only affects the running of that particular train but also has a cascading effect on the trains that run behind it. In a suburban system like Mumbai Division, this results in late running of Mail / Express and suburban trains, hampering their punctuality. Further, the misuse of ACP for the convenience of one or a few passengers ends up causing inconvenience to all other passengers of the affected trains,” officials explained.
“In the Mumbai Division, chain pulling occurs mainly at Kalyan, LTT and Thane stations. These are important Main line stations where most trains halt. Chain pulling has cascading effects on the punctuality of not only mail and express trains but also suburban trains,” said Shivaji Sutar, chief public relations officer, CR.
“If chain pulling occurs after the starting of trains at crossings points at these stations, then the train blocks other lines also, which badly hits the punctuality of local trains, especially in morning and evening peak hours,” added Sutar, considered one of the most efficient and experienced officers of the train operations department.
“We appeal to passengers to reach the terminus/ station at least 30 minutes before the departure of their respective trains and carry limited luggage. Passengers may also utilize the services of battery-operated cars or use wheelchairs available at the station manager’s office for senior citizens, differently abled persons etc. to reach the desired coach, so that boarding of trains can be done smoothly and in time, thus avoiding ACP for unnecessary reasons,” said another officer of the train operations department, CR.
