New Delhi: Section 58 of the Railways Act, 1989 provides for earmarking of accommodation for female passengers in trains. Accordingly, in trains carrying passengers, Indian Railways have earmarked following accommodation for female passengers:
i. A reservation quota of six berths in sleeper class in long distance Mail/Express trains.
ii. A combined quota of four lower berths per coach in Sleeper class and two lower berth per coach in Air Conditioned 3 tier (3AC) and Air Conditioned 2 tier (2AC) classes for Senior citizens, Female passengers 45 years of age and above, and pregnant women when travelling alone. In case of Rajdhani, Duronto and fully Air Conditioned/Express trains, the number of berths to be earmarked under this quota in 3AC is 4 lower berths per coach as against 3 lower berths per coach in normal Mail/Express trains.
iii. Second class accommodation for women in the second Class-cum-Luggage-cum Guard’s Coach (SLR) in most of the long distance trains.
iv. Unreserved coaches/compartments for female passengers in EMU (Electrical Multiple Unit)/DMU (Diesel Multiple Unit)/MMTS (Multi Modal Transport System) trains & local passenger trains depending upon demand pattern as well as availability of accommodation.
v. Running of ladies special EMU/MEMU/MMTs services on the suburban sections of Mumbai, Kolkata, Secunderabad and Chennai as well as on the Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR) sections.
Earmarking of accommodation for different categories of passengers including women passengers is done based on demand pattern and availability of accommodation, which is a continuous and ongoing process.
Policing on Railways being a State subject, prevention of crime, registration of cases, their investigation and maintenance of law and order in Railway premises as well as on running trains are the statutory responsibility of the State Governments, which they discharge through Government Railway Police (GRP)/District Police. However, Railway Protection Force (RPF) supplements the efforts of GRP in providing better protection and security of passenger area and passengers and for matters connected therewith.
However, to provide security to passengers including women passengers, following steps are being taken by Indian Railways:
1. On vulnerable and identified routes/sections, 2500 trains (on an average) are escorted by Railway Protection Force daily, in addition to 2200 trains escorted by Government Railway Police of different States daily.
2. Surveillance is kept through CCTV cameras, provided at about 394 stations over Indian Railways, to ensure safety and security of passengers.
3. Ladies Special trains running in Metropolitan cities are being escorted by lady RPF personnel. The train escorting parties have been briefed to keep extra vigil on the ladies coaches en route and at halting stations in long distance trains.
4. Through various social media platforms viz. Twitter, Facebook etc., Railways are in regular touch with passengers including women passengers to enhance security of passengers and to address their security concern.
5. Security Help Line number 182 is made operational over Indian Railways for security related assistance to passengers in distress.
6. An Integrated Security System consisting of surveillance of vulnerable stations through Close Circuit Television Camera Network, Access Control etc. has been sanctioned to improve surveillance mechanism over 202 railway stations.
7. Regular drives are conducted to prevent entry of male passengers in compartments reserved for ladies, and if found, they are prosecuted under the provisions of the Railways Act.
8. Liaison is made by RPF with the State Police/GRP authorities at all levels for prevention of crime, registration of cases, their investigation and maintenance of law and order in Railway premises as well as on running trains.
This Press Release is based on the information given by the Minister of State for Railways Shri Rajen Gohain in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha on 27.12.2017 (Wednesday).
