Mumbai: The Free Press Journal was greeted with poor toilet facilities and mountains of garbage when it visited the Central Railway's Govandi station on Tuesday. The inspection was the fourth installment of the ongoing station audit campaign.
The lack of passenger amenities becomes more stark as Govandi is one of the busiest stations on the harbour line. Servicing nearly 400 suburban trains, it handles more than one lakh footfalls daily, bringing in a revenue exceeding Rs 1 crore monthly.
The station, surrounded by slums, presents a grim picture of inadequate infrastructure and safety hazards. Both foot overbridges (FOBs), particularly the one towards Vashi, are overrun by anti-social elements and illegal flower vendors, posing a threat to commuters' safety. The sorry state of the water hut on platform 2 reflects the overall neglect of basic amenities.
Sanitation facilities are abysmal, with toilets either locked or in deplorable conditions, emitting foul odours that permeate the platforms. The sight of a mountain of garbage near the tracks put a question mark on the commitment of the officials responsible for cleanliness.
Adding to the safety concerns is the ease of access for few slum dwellers, who have created makeshift arrangements for direct entries from platform 1 to their dwellings. The broken entrance on the platform is yet another unaddressed issue.
While efforts are underway to construct new FOBs, passengers desist to use the existing ones owing to the lack of escalators. Many commuters, including women, opt to cross tracks instead.
This newspaper observed that more than 300 passengers crossed tracks in just two hours. Salimullah Khan, a commuter, emphasised the need for regular security deployment and penalties for offenders, along with the installation of escalators at both ends of the station.
Suhana Begum, a local who regularly commutes to her workplace in Bhendi Bazar, said, “The sorry state of the Govandi station is a wake-up call for railway authorities to prioritise passenger safety and comfort. Immediate measures such as enhanced security, improved sanitation facilities and better infrastructure are the need of the hour,” she said.
Noor Mohammad, a Shivaji Nagar resident and a frequent commuter, pointed out, “Railway needs to arrange adequate drinking water facilities and upgrade toilets. Extra benches should also be provided at the platforms.” In a similar vein, traveller Suresh Chavan underscored the urgent need to address the sanitation issues.
