Thiruvananthapuram Central, the largest railway station of the State in terms of passenger movement and an important railway hub of Southern Railway, has been certified ISO 14001:2015 for Environmental Management System.
Thiruvananthapuram Central is the first railway station in the State to be ISO 14001:2015 certified and has made it to the select list of ISO certified railway stations in Indian Railways.
Habibganj railway station in Madhya Pradesh was the first station to be so certified followed by Coimbatore Junction Railway station in Tamil Nadu.
ISO 14001:2015 accredits an organisation that manages its environmental responsibilities in a systematic manner as per standard norms.
The services certified at the station as per the policy and guidelines of the Railways are provisions of train operation, signal and telecommunication, cleaning and maintenance, handling of passengers, passenger amenities, ticket booking, and parcel handling.
The certification is valid till April 8, 2022, with annual surveillance audit in April 2020.
Professional agency
A professional agency ‘LMS certifications’ carried out the assessment of the activities and streamlining procedures to improve the quality and environmental impact of activities at the station.
ISO 14001:2015 certified organisations contribute to the environmental pillar of sustainability. Ajay Kaushik, Station Director Thiruvananthapuram Central, has taken the initiative of ISO certification for the station under the guidance of Shirish Kumar Sinha, Divisional Railway Manager.
Revamp
The certification process is part of the revamp of the proposed Thiruvananthapuram Central.
The station did not have much problems, as it was already adhering to the norms for certification and had facilities for scientific waste disposal and segregation, Mr. Kaushik told The Hindu .
The Railways had decided to display the certificate at a vantage point at the station, as the commuters had also played a key role in the station’s certification, he added.
