Garbage spilling over onto the railway tracks not only spreads ailments, it also slows down the trains. Incredible but true. Officials from the Central Railway (CR) said that piles of garbage have restricted the local trains’ speed limit at a few locations in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). For instance, the speed limit for trains on the sixth line between Kurla and Thane is nearly 100 kmph, but trains slow down to 30kmph between Vikhroli and Kanjur Marg due to slush and garbage on the tracks.
Similarly, trains are not able to run full speed on the Thane-Airoli section of the TransHarbour line and along the Trombay- Kurla section of the goods line because of slush. Even between Ghatkopar and Vikhroli, speed is being restricted at several spots due to waste being dumped onto the tracks from around a dozen slum colonies.
“There is a risk factor due to tracks being covered with slush and other waste. Garbage causes corrosion and reduced lifespan of the railway tracks,” a CR official said.
A member of the railway workers’ union said that workers repairing tracks often have to bear the brunt of the garbage. “Workers are often forced to operate amid unbearable stench. Garbage and slush on tracks cause health issues to the workers,” he said.
Slum-dwellers say they empathise with railway workers, but lack of toilets in slum colonies force them to defecate along the tracks. “We have zero options,” said Mohammed Nazir, who resides in the slums located along the tracks between Kanjurmarg and Vikhroli. “It’s a decades old problem but no authority is paying attention to our needs,” he said.
