Umaisar Gull Ganie
Srinagar, Feb 22: The train services in Kashmir may have reduced long distances and helped people to reach their destinations within shortest duration, but the rail routes in the Valley are proving to be very dangerous as in the past five years, 34 people have been crushed to death on the deadly rail tracks here, official figures accessed revealed.
The rising incidents of deaths on railway tracks in Kashmir have raised a concern among the rail officials in the Valley. The figures state that Budgam-Srinagar rail track has alone claimed 13 lives in the past five years. On this track, two people were crushed to death in two back to back incidents on February 21 and 22 this year on this deadly track.
Data accessed reveals that in 2017, seven people were crushed to death on the different rail tracks of Valley. “In 2018, 12 people died on rail tracks in Kashmir while as six people were killed in 2021 and in the ensuing year, five people lost their lives in the accidents that took place on the rail tracks,” the figures state. In 2020, none got killed or injured as the train services remained suspended across Kashmir in the wake of Covid pandemic.
An official, however, blamed youth for taking the rail speed as for granted. “I have seen many youth lying on the rail track, taking selfies unmindful about train timings and train speed. Many youth were hit by train as they were wearing earphones and carrying mobiles in their hands. This is suicide,” he said, wishing not to be named.
Chief Area Manager (CAM), Northern Railways, Kashmir, Saqib Yousuf said that as far as preventive measures are concerned, railway tracks are not for walking. “It is an offence to walk on the tracks,” he said and admitted that Srinagar-Budgam rail track is indeed a deadly one as the area is the most populated one.
“As far as Srinagar-Budgam and Srinagar-Baramulla tracks are concerned, we have decided to increase monitoring to ensure no one walks on the track. The responsibility by and large lies on the people itself as they should avoid walk on railway tracks during morning hours,” he said.
He urged people to avoid going for morning walks on railway tracks and train chugs with high speed and doesn’t see who is on the track. Yousuf, however, termed the deaths as unfortunate stating people need to be very cautious and stay away from tracks.
A railway official said that rail tracks are not for taking selfies as any move to take selfie on the track may invite death. It may be recalled that on October 2008, the then Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh flagged off the first train in Kashmir from Srinagar station at Nowgam. Initial services using an 8-CarDEMU would run twice daily from Rajwansher in Budgam district to Anantnag covering 66 kms at the cost of just Rs 15. The railway authorities gradually modified the bogies and at present new version of bogies are part of the trains that chug across Kashmir.
