Mumbai (The Hindu): To reduce overcrowding on locals, State has allowed employees to be late by an hour

Taking serious note of the 4,000 deaths on the city’s railway tracks every year, the Bombay High Court on Friday said in no other country would so many deaths not be taken seriously, and in India “we just sit on the sidelines and watch on”.

In the previous hearing, the court had said, “There is complete lack of vision and planning on the part of the Railways. The situation of overcrowding on the local trains has gone out of control. None of the concerned authorities are taking the issue seriously. These deaths will continue to take place unless the Railways and the state do not take immediate steps to rectify it. People are dying on the trains and the tracks daily and the authorities cannot continue to keep their eyes shut. If you act now and succeed in saving even just one such life, your actions will make a large difference.”

A division bench of Justices Naresh Patil and GS Kulkarni was hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) that highlights woes of commuters who travel everyday in overcrowded local trains. The PIL also points out problems senior citizens face when they travel in trains.

Acting upon one of the suggestions made by the court to reduce overcrowding during peak hours, the state informed the court on Friday that employees have been given 60 minutes grace time, and they wouldn’t be marked absent if they are late by an hour. The state also said it has conveyed the same to various departments as well as government schools and colleges.

To address the issue of overcrowded trains, the court had asked the Railways if elevated tracks can be built above the existing ones. The counsel said the Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC) had sent such a proposal to the state but it was not accepted due to floor space index (FSI) issues.

The court noted that FSI should not be an issue in saving lives of people and asked the state to reply at the next hearing.

Photo credit: The Hindu