Dialling 182 seems to be a compulsive habit with railway passengers. The toll-free security helpline number of the Indian Railways is apparently flooded with non-security related complaints.
Of the 22,300 calls attended by the South Western Railway (SWR) during 2016, only 180 were related to security issues. The rest were on catering, coach maintenance, cleanliness, missing of the train, delay in arrival of train, among others.
“All the 180 security-related calls were redressed,” Prakash Kumar Panda, Divisional Security Commissioner, Railway Protection Force, Mysuru Division, told
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Issues redressed included providing speedy assistance to passengers in the event of theft, harassment, pickpocketing and other criminal incidents on trains and on railway premises.
As personnel handing the toll-free line are spending a large part of their work hours diverting non-security related calls, Mr. Panda felt there was a need for more awareness among the passengers. “Our personnel, who receive non-security related calls, divert them to the concerned departments,” he said.
The SWR also has a twitter account @rpfswr for registering security complaints. A total of 116 security-related complaints were received on the social media platform during 2016 and all of them were redressed, he added.When non-security related complaints are received on this twitter account, officials in the Division Railway Manager’s office will take care of the issue, he said.
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Though an Android app ‘SWR Security App’ has been developed by the Railway Protection Force in matters of security, which can be downloaded from the Google Play Store, there has been poor response for it.
“There is a need for more awareness about the app,” he said. The app can be used for six basic functions: reporting a crime, lodging a complaint, passenger feedback, security helpline, contacting emergency assistance and useful information.