Suburban railway security proposals gather dust

Nearly 9 years after 26/11 attacks, Integral Security System on Western, Central lines yet to see light of day

July 04, 2017 12:40 am | Updated 12:40 am IST - Mumbai

There is a problem with providing security to the more than 75 lakh daily passengers on the Mumbai suburban railway network.

Nearly nine years after the November 26, 2008, (26/11) terror attacks on Mumbai, during which the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus was one of the primary targets, stations on the Western and Central Railways are waiting for Close-Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras, luggage scanning machines lie unattended, and door frame metal detectors (DFMDs) and handheld detectors (HHDs) are barely functional.

All these were to be part of the Integral Security System (ISS) that the ministry of railways was supposed to implement to make stations more secure against terror attacks.

Western Railway’s first security proposal for CCTV cameras was sent for approval soon after the 26/11 attacks, but was greenlighted only in 2016. Then, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) worked on the proposal for six months. When it was finally ready, the Railway Board sent a letter to modify the work.

A senior RPF officer, who declined to be named, told The Hindu , “The proposal was pending for eight years, and when the tendering process was about to start, the Railway Board asked us to modify it. It was decided initially to install 432 CCTV cameras at 37 stations on the Western Railway (WR).

Later, this was changed to include only six prominent stations. This was changed again, and the Railway Board has decided to install CCTV cameras at all 37 stations on the Western line. This is just a waste of time.” A letter to this effect was sent to the WR general manager.

The letter also states that the RPF can request for more funds to buy the CCTV camera network if the sanctioned amount (₹21.24 crore) is insufficient. However, in his reply, the WR general manager said that it was not possible to build such a wide CCTV network with just ₹21.24 crore. The WR, in collaboration with the RPF, is working on another proposal that “aims to give a realistic budget” to install 2,815 cameras across 37 stations. “The total cost of installation would be around ₹100 crore,” the RPF officer said. “If we want the latest cameras with 360-degree coverage and other high definition functions, the cost would be ₹1 lakh per camera. At present, WR has 1,103 CCTV cameras, installed on a hire basis.

WR sent another proposal for 1,744 cameras on hire. This will cost the Railways ₹ 26 crore for three years. When The Hindu contacted Anup Shukla, senior divisional security commissioner, WR, he refused to comment on the issue saying he is not authorised to speak to the media.

On the other hand, Central Railway (CR) has been struggling on the security front due to a lack of trained staff to monitor its 13 luggage scanners and various DFMDs installed at stations. Scanners at Lokmanya Tilak Terminus are damaged, and because the maintenance contract has expired, there is no one to repair them. “We don’t have sufficient manpower for the machines,” said Sachin Bhalode, senior Divisional Security Commissioner, CR. “We have sent a proposal for additional manpower.”

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