Local Trains on Central Line: Is The Shortage of Motormen Causing Repeated Disruptions?

Mumbai, May 31: The central railway is considered to be the longest train route in Mumbai as compared to western and harbour lines. Therefore, it's more prone to disruptions and the issue has posed a big problem for the authorities. However, according to a new report in The Mumbai Mirror, the reason behind repeated disruptions on central lines are not due to technical glitches but due to staff crunch.

The central line local trains repeatedly experience the problem of cancellations and delays. While the authority claims that the problem is due to technical glitches, the real reason behind the lousy service is now believed to be due to less number of motormen to run trains on this route. Sources said that nearly 20 percent of the total motormen posts are lying vacant on the central line. The division currently has 690 motormen against the sanctioned strength of 898.

Denying the claims, the Divisional Railway Manager, Central Railway, Mumbai division, Sanjay Kumar Jain said that there's no shortage of motormen. However, he ensured that he would look into the issue. To prove his claim, he further added, "In one year, we have increased 72 services, which are running daily. If I did not have an adequate crew, I would not have been able to run these services. I am not aware of what may have happened on a given day. I will have to check. We will inquire into any cancellation of services. I do not find any reason for alarm. We have not cancelled any train on account of motormen. We are inducting more motormen soon,” was quoted as saying.

Reportedly, on May 27, ten Main Line and 14 Harbour Line services were cancelled. Similarly, on May 25, ten services were cancelled, while the number was two, five, and three for May 26, May 28, and May 29 respectively and the reason behind the cancellation, is alleged to be the shortage of motormen.

Mumbai local trains are experiencing severe rush on a daily basis. Therefore, even if a single train is cancelled, the crowd for next train increases by more than 4,000 passengers, leading to overcrowding. As per the records, a 12-coach local train during peak hours carries over 5000 passengers against its capacity of around 2,000.

Due to rising rush in local trains, instances of fatalities have increased in recent times. As per the report, in 2017, 654 passengers died, and 1,434 were injured after falling off crowded locals across the city’s entire suburban railway network.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 31, 2018 12:41 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).