The state’s first redeveloped station will provide an airport-like experience to the passengers with all modern facilities. A whopping Rs 308 crore will be spent in the first phase, reports said. The Railways department has decided to complete the project in 24 months.
Speaking to media persons, Vaishnaw said, “Years and years of wait will come to an end and dream of the people of Bhubaneswar and the whole of Odisha will finally turn into reality. The idea and design to redevelop Bhubaneswar railway station on par with international airports is ready. The tender process is also completed. Today, we reviewed and are planning to relocate the present railway station to another place, so that the physical construction work can begin soon.”
“I request my big brother and Odisha’s own leader Dharmendra Pradhan to come and do the ‘Bhumi Pujan’. Once the bhumi pujan is done, we will start the construction work and make Bhubaneswar airport world class,” Vaishnaw added.
Over 1.43 lakh people depend on Bhubaneswar railway station every day. So, the railway minister said that there was a need for world-class amenities and facilities at the station.
According to the upgradation plan, the station will have elevated road entrance-segregated departure & arrival, segregated arrivals fobs, air concourse with seating spaces, lounges, convenience stalls, natural light penetration above escalators to create visual contact between ground level and stairwell, clear connections from entrance to platform connections, passenger flow streams during rush hours-segregated arrival & departure, real-time passenger information, use of tactile tiles for accessibility and ease of passengers with disabilities.
East Coast Railway Chief PRO Biswajit Sahu said, “We have kept the segregated arrival and departure in different directions. No railway station has that facilities till now. It is being redeveloped in airport style. Passengers will arrive in one level and depart in another level. This will ensure smooth passage for passengers. This will also help maintain proper safety and security because only arrival passengers are usually checked.”
“We are also making efforts to develop it as green building. If not completely, a portion of the railway station will be developed as green building,” Sahu added.
As per reports, the aluminium freight rake wields the capacity to carry 180-ton more goods as against the traditional rake. Moreover, it is 180 tons lighter than the traditional steel rake.
The advanced aluminium freight rake has been designed by the Aditya Birla Group.
“In a first, a railway wagon rake made from light-weight aluminium has been launched. This is indeed a happy moment for the engineers, designers, and all others involved in the project,” said Vaishnaw.
On the other hand, the redevelopment work of the Bhubaneswar Railway Station will commence soon. The railway station will be redevelopment to offer a world-class experience informed Union Minister Vaishnaw.
The planning and design work for the redevelopment work and the tender process have been completed. The review for the same was done today. Further, the groundwork for the redevelopment will begin soon and Bhoomi Pujan, or the groundbreaking ceremony will be done soon. Within a few months, Bhubaneswar Railway Station will develop into a world-class station.
Meanwhile, the Union Minister also informed about the much-awaited Khordha-Bolangir railway line that will ensure smooth connectivity between western Odisha and the coastal part.
Talking about the Khordha-Bolangir railway line, he said that the work is in progress. Though a hurdle of environment clearance has come in the way, they are in talks with the state government for the same regarding the 100 km forest area.
“The construction work of the Khordha- Bolangir railway line has picked up the pace. The only hurdle is the 100 km forest area. After giving high efforts to obtain the clearance for phase-I, the State government has given the green signal. The dream project will soon turn into reality,” said Vaishnaw.
According to sources, the mishap took place at around 8.35 pm while the train was on its way to Vizianagaram via Bhubaneswar and Cuttack from Chakradharpur Division.
Due to the derailment at Bhubaneswar station yard, some trains are likely to be affected partially, sources informed.
Affected Trains and Their Present Status
The stalls have been opened with the involvement of local Self Help Groups, in co-ordination with Odisha Rural Development and Marketing Society (ORMAS).
With the opening of special stalls, passengers at Bhubaneswar railway station van get Khurda district’s famous bell metal products.
Similarly, at Cuttack railway station, the passengers will have an opportunity to buy silver filigree handicrafts and handloom products that are synonymous with the district.
The passengers can purchase these products directly from the artisans without involving any intermediaries.
Urging the passengers to take the advantages of the stalls and to have the glimpses of local products available at railway stations, Divisional Railway Manager,Khurda Road Division, Rinkesh Roy requested the local artisans, potters, weavers, tribals to come forward to apply for these stalls.
Notably, Khurda Road Division had previously launched one stall at Puri Railway station to promote Odisha’s famous Handicrafts “Pattachitra” and “Pipili Applique” under ‘One Station One Product’ scheme.
The division has also issued notification through various social media platforms, inviting applications for ‘One Station One Product’ stalls at 78 Railway stations under the Khurda Road Division.
Sweety’s father works with the BSF in Tripura. The family members said that Sweety had boarded the Jan Shatabdi Express from Howrah yesterday.
Sweety reportedly had called her mother after deboarding at Bhubaneswar railway station. However, the family could not contact her subsequently as her mobile phone was switched off.
On the request of the family members, one Suresh Panda (local guardian) has lodged a complaint with the GRP in connection with the incident.
“The girl had arrived at platform no.6 at Bhubaneswar railway station at around 8:06 pm yesterday. But nobody knows where she went subsequently. We immediately visited Nayapalli police station and again came to Bhubaneswar government railway police,” said Panda.
According to Panda, the family suspects that some miscreant might have kidnapped her by drugging her.
“The girl had spoken with her mother after arriving at Bhubaneswar,” he added. Meanwhile, the railway police officials could not be contacted over the issue.
A woman passenger reportedly fell down from the moving train following which the RPF constable Sunara Munda quickly pulled her away to save her from falling into the tracks.
According to reports, the woman from the Ichhapur in Andhra Pradesh fell from the Palasa-Cuttack MEMU passenger (18444) train while deboarding it. The video of the entire incident soon went viral on social media.
The quick and alert action of the RPF constable has been praised by all, including Sudhanshu Sarangi, additional DG of police. "Great work by Head Constable Sunaram Munda @RPF_INDIA today at Bhubaneswar Railway Station. He saved the life of a lady passenger. Please watch the video till the end," he tweeted while sharing the video.
Addressing a presser today, the BJP MP said, “The construction of the ROB, though started in 2013, has not yet been completed. However, keeping in view the sufferings of people, the Railway department has been asked to complete it by August 31.”
“The Railway department has also been asked to monitor the progress of work on a regular basis. We and the local people will also monitor it,” the Parliamentarian said.
Besides, a foot overbridge will also come up near the Bhubaneswar Railway Station connecting Laxmisagar and Master Canteen areas, she said.
“A foot overbridge will also come up on the north side of the Bhubaneswar Railway Station at a cost of around Rs 3 crore. Once completed, people from Laxmisagar area can easily come to the Master canteen area,” Sarangi added.
BJP MP from Bhubaneswar Aparajita Sarangi on Thursday said Lingaraj Temple Road PH is going to be transformed into a Railway Station very soon. Bhubaneswar Railway station will also get a facelift.
While speaking to OTV, the parliamentarian said, “I had requested Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw to upgrade Lingaraj Temple Road Pasanger Halt into a railway station four months ago. Then I also requested him to redevelop Bhubaneswar Railway Station and take steps for its overall beatification. I am glad to announce that the two projects have been approved and work on these two projects will soon take off.”
In this regard, MP Sarangi met Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and thanked him for accepting her two proposals.
Taking to her Twitter handle, the BJP leader said, “Glad to inform that two requests of mine have been allowed-A) Upgradation of Lingaraj Passenger Halt in Ekamra into a Railway Station. B) Redevelopment of Bhubaneswar Railway Station. Had been pursuing the matter. Work will commence soon. Grateful to Minister @AshwiniVaishnaw.”
The saffron party members launched the campaign seeking justice for the deceased lady teacher and her kin. The BJP members demanded a CBI probe into the case along with dismissal of Odisha Home minister after reports of his link in the case surfaced.
Both the Class VIII and the man identified Syed Ali are residents of Kakdwip Town in North 24 Parganas district of the neighbouring State. The duo has been handed over to the Harwood Point Police Station in Kakdwip Town.
As per an the allegations of the family members of the girl, she was kidnapped by Syed on October 19 following which they informed lodged an FIR at Harwood Point Police Station.
Based on FIR, police started an investigation and came to know that Syedd had boarded the Sri Sathya Sai Prashanthi Nilayam Train with the girl and they were going to Vijaywada.
“We received a requisition over phone from the IIC of Harwood Point Police Station that a case of kidnap of a minor girl had been registered with them that the duo was travelling in Sri Sathya Sai Prashanthi Nilayam Train from West Bengal towards Vijaywada.They shared the copies of the FIR, ID card and photographs of the girl through e-mail,” said K Sethi, Inspector-In-Charge of RPF Station Bhubaneswar.
The Bhubaneswar RPF immediately swung into action and began searching for the girl inside the train as it arrived at 9.30 am yesterday. The police team found the girl in S-4 coach of the train and detained them.
“I was taking her to marry her and I was unaware that she was a minor. We were going to Kerala. We were in love relationship since the last six months,” said Syed who is married twice and has three children.
A police team from the Harwood Point Police Station reached Bhubaneswar and took the custody of the girl and the accused Syed Ali. Further investigation into the case will be carried out by the neighbouring police.
“Following a complaint of kidnapping from the family members of the girl against Syed Ali, we had started an investigation. He is already married twice. While his first wife is no more, he has three children from his second wife. Despite being married, he was eloping with the minor girl,” informed Pralay Dhar, Sub-Inspector at Harwood Point Police Station.
A joint plan is being worked out with Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) to make the project a success, he said.
Sharma is on a one-day visit to the Odisha state capital to review the ongoing projects of the region with East Coast Railway (ECoR) officials.
While inspecting the station, the Railway Board chairperson said that several facilities have been constructed and the primary focus is on the development of concourse, platform, lighting, waiting rooms, toilets, and elevators, an ECoR release said.
A redevelopment plan for Bhubaneswar station has already been done. Action is being taken to complete the station redevelopment project work at the earliest. One platform and two additional lines will be added to this project, Sharma said.
Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA) will work out the Railway portion of the developmental work and the rest will be done by BDA, he said.
The Railway Board chairperson reviewed the ongoing projects of the ECoR with general manager Vidya Bhushan, senior officials, and divisional railway managers.
Sharma praised the ECoR for improved project monitoring system, consistency, and maintaining the top position among all loading zones of the Railways, the release said.
To improve the quality of service both in loading and in the passenger segment, Sharma said special attention should be given to safety, increasing line capacity through intermediate block signalling and automatic block signalling system, among others.
As per the complaint report filed by the grandmother of the girl, the accused abducted the girl after striking a conversation with her when the duo were at the station and were planning to go to Parlakhemundi.
The accused had also assured the duo to drop them at Parlakhemundi.
"She had gone to buy food along with the accused and when she didn't return for a very long time I started suspecting," grandmother of the girl said.
Subsequently, the grandmother of the girl lodged a complaint with the police.
"The man had covered his face with a piece of cloth and looked suspicious. When I inquired about his identity he claimed that he is a truck driver. Proper investigation should be done as there could be a bigger racket involved in the case," said Kulamani Mohanty, a man who helped the lady.
A police investigation is currently underway to nab the accused.
According to sources, the youth was waiting at the Bhubaneswar railway station to return to Bihar after appearing the exam conducted here when the three miscreants allegedly thrashed the boy and snatched his bag containing original certificates and documents and fled the spot.
“They beat me and snatched my bag in which all my original certificates were there. I searched for them in the nearby area for almost four hours and later informed the police after seeing one of them roaming along the road,” said the youth.
The railway police have reportedly nabbed the accused and seized the bike used in the incident.
"We are interrogating the accused and other accused will also be nabbed soon and the stolen items will be recovered," said a railway cop.
As per sources, Child Line and GRP officials rescued the minor girl from the railway station while she was returning to work at Nayak's house after a few days of leave. She was later handed over to the Child Welfare Committee, Khurda.
It is alleged that the minor girl, a resident of Prasanti Vihar under Infocity police limits here, has been engaged in various household chores and babysitting at the DCPO's house in Angul for the past several months. The girl also alleged that she used to be beaten up by the woman on several occasions for being inefficient at work.
After rescuing the girl, Child Line officials lodged a complaint at the Infocity Police Station here today seeking a probe into the matter and necessary action against the accused as per law.
The minor is currently lodged at the VJSS open shelter here, sources added.
Despite several attempts, the child protection official was unavailable to comment on the matter.
Patnaik stated that the State government has already offered to develop a modern Railway Station building with international-standard passenger amenities in the capital city. The modern station facility is planned to be built on land belonging to the State government where a multi-modal hub is being developed which will seamlessly integrate with the Smart City development plans.
The State government has already engaged a design firm from Singapore, Subarna Jurong, for this purpose, he added.
"The MoU that was to be signed on January 20, 2018 envisaged taking up of the project in two phases. As the same could not be signed and the project has already been delayed considerably, it is proposed by the State government that the whole project may be taken up in one phase," read the letter.
"Accordingly, State government has moved for signing of a revised MoU, which may be expeditiously approved by the Railways," it added.
Patnaik further stated that as the project is of immense importance to the citizens of Bhubaneswar and State government is committed to bear its total cost, the MoU may be signed in the State Capital on a mutually convenient date.
Bhusan disclosed this after inspecting the station on Friday. He took stock of the various facilities and passenger amenities required to be developed as part of the development process.
He said a detailed project report, plan and design of construction has been approved.
“The tender of the project will be floated very soon and construction work will commence as per the plan. We have set a target to finish the project within 2-3 years,” said Bhusan.
“The railway station will have airport-like modern facilities. The station will be developed with aesthetic lighting, improved signage, and improved passenger amenities including waiting hall, station complex, restaurant and shopping mall. More amenities will be provided to the travelling public. Apart from this, circulating area will also be developed and will be beautified. Drainage system will also be thoroughly addressed. More parking space will be provided near platform number six side,” he said informing that the station will be developed with an approximate cost of Rs1075 crore.
“The station will be one of the best stations in eastern India and will be constructed as modern business centre,” said EcoR General Manager.
He also appealed to the people for suggestions and ideas for enhancing the aesthetics.
(Edited by Suryakant Jena)
As per the decision, the railway station will get a heritage building look for which a new design will be finalised by February next year.
Besides, the budget amount will be increased beyond Rs 60 crore that was earlier planned for the upgradation of the Bhubaneswar railway station.
The Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) has been given charge to supervise the smart station development work.
The Ashoka Market located near the railway station will also be shifted ahead of the work.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MdTD2Kfns8
The young woman even had an altercation with police and abused them too.
During interrogation by police she was found to be possessing an Aadhaar Card bearing name Duniya Khan from Lajpat Nagar, South Delhi.
The police also recovered some cash, a bottle of liquor and an expensive mobile phone from her possession.
Meanwhile, Bhubaneswar DCP Satyabrata Bhoi informed, "She had misbehaved and assaulted Kharvel Nagar police team during patrolling, in a drunken state yesterday. She had also resisted when the police attempted to control her."
The young woman is being forwarded to court today, said Bhoi adding, "While an Aadhaar card with Delhi address was found from her possession, her identity is still suspicious. She is not cooperating in the interrogation but we are trying to establish a link to trace her details with support of the Aadhaar card."
Holding party flags and shouting slogans, the activists led by senior party leader Suresh Routray took out a rally from the Congress Bhavan to the railway staion and staged demonstration there. They also protested arrest of Congress national vice-president Rahul Gandhi during the farmers’ protest in Madhya Pradesh.
“The youth Congress has staged rail roko at different places across the state to protest the killing of innocent farmers in Madhya Pradesh. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised many things for the development of farmers but has failed to do so. Congress has always fought for the interests of farmers and would continue to do so,” said a youth activist.
“We want justice for the farmers and the government should make sure that the farmers get proper price for their produce,” he added.
Police personnel were deployed at the spot to avoid any untoward situation during the protest.
Around 20 cows were also rescued from the Kochuveli-Guwahati super-fast express. According to reports some cattle food was also seized while a veterinary doctor and four caretakers were also detained.
[caption id="attachment_217194" align="alignleft" width="300"] The accused duo has been tied to a pole at Bhubaneswar Railway station[/caption]
The train from Karnataka stood on the track for around two hours following the tension. Later, the service resumed after GRP and RPF officials intervened in the matter.
The GRP started an inquiry to find out the reason behind cattle transportation. The duo is also being interrogated, a GRP official said.
The Bajrang Dal activists alleged the cows were transported for slaughtering. "We were tipped off by our activists in Srikakulam and accordingly intercepted them in Bhubaneswar. We rescued 20 cows while being transported illegally in the train for slaughtering", Bajrang Dal district coordinator Bhupesh Nayak said.
Animal Welfare Board alleged Railway officials' connivance in such unlawful act. "Building good rapport with top officials of Railway department, the cattle traffickers are able to commit such crime", said Debasis Patnaik, member of Animal Welfare Board.
According to sources, the CBI sleuths raided Bhubaneswar, Khurda and Puri railway stations over sale of illegal tickets.
Officials of the investigating agency also questioned four ticket collectors in these stations in this regard and tallied the amounts mentioned in the receipts with the actual amount they had, sources added.
A high level source revealed that the CBI teams are targeting the travelling ticket examiners (TTEs) in this raid.
Speaking on the occasion, Prabhu said the BJP led NDA government has given priority to the development of the nation as well as the socio-economic development of the people.
“The topmost priority in the development of the country is the development of the railway sector,” he added.
The Union minister said his government had decided to enable free Wi-Fi services in 400 A1 and A category stations in the country. Of this, a target has been sent to enable the service in 100 railway stations this year through Railtel Corporation of India (a Miniratna enterprise of Government of India focusing on providing broadband and VPN services).
“After the launch of the first Wi-Fi service in Mumbai Central Railway Station, there were plans to launch this service at the major railway stations in Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata etc. But I had insisted that the next railway station to be provided with the service will be in the Odisha capital as this state, despite its major revenue contribution to the railways, has remained neglected since long. It has been decided to include two more stations in Odisha - Cuttack and Puri - in the list of 100 stations where free Wi-Fi service would be enabled this year. Puri Railway station will have the facility before the ensuing Rath Yatra,” he said.
Stating that his government has partnered with Google to provide Internet services in 400 A1 and A category stations in the country, Prabhu said the Wi-Fi service by the Railtel Corporation to the people of India is the best in the world.
He said some states like Odisha had remained neglected by the Congress led UPA government at the Centre for years as it had not taken any step to develop railway infrastructure in these states.
For Odisha, the UPA government had allocated Rs 719 crore in the Railway budget in 2012-13, Rs 812 crore in 2013-14. On the contrary, the BJP-led NDA government had allocated Rs 4200 crore for the state in 2015-16 and increased it further to Rs 6000 crore in the current fiscal,” he claimed.
Taking a dig at the UPA government on the issue of shifting of proposed wagon repair workshop at Narla in Kalahandi district, Prabhu said nothing materialises through announcement. To implement the announcement, provisions have to be made in the budget. For Narla wagon repair workshop, the UPA government had not made any budgetary provision, he observed.
“I have had a meeting with chief minister Naveen Patnaik on this matter. As per the decision taken at the meeting, a joint working group has been formed to decide on the type of railway workshop to be set up in Narla after considering the existing infrastructure facilities. The chief secretary of the state and the general manager of East Coast Railway (ECoR) will jointly suggest the Railway Board in this regard,” he said, adding that the Railways will set up a factory which will be financially and commercially viable.
Earlier in the day, police detained 10 Congress activists when they tried to barge into the railway station to show black flags to the Railway minister protesting the shifting of the proposed wagon repair shop from Narla to Vishakhapatnam.
Railway minister Suresh Prabhu, who is on a two-day Odisha visit, will launch the free service at the station today.
Under the Digital India initiative, Railways is committed to provide better internet facilities to the passengers at 100 busiest stations in the country by the end of this year. Eventually, the service will be rolled out at 400 stations across the country covering all major rail premises.
Besides Bhubaneswar, trials are going on at about 10 more stations including Jaipur, Patna, Ranchi, Ernakulum, Allahabad, Lucknow and Guwahati for the luanch of Wi-Fi services shortly.
Railtel, a PSU of the Railways, is providing free Wi-Fi service at stations in collaboration with Google. Railtel owns a pan-India optic fiber network exclusively on railway tracks. It has laid out over 45,000 kms of optic fibre network across the country, which Google will utilise for its Wi-Fi service.
The network is built for wide coverage and high capacity usage unlike a typical Wi-Fi hotspot which offers connectivity in a limited area.
As per the plan, Railtel will be the ISP, while Google will provide the Wireless Area Networks (WAN) and will set-up the points of access at platforms.
Designed to offer rail users the best internet experience, Wi-Fi will be available to any user who has a smartphone. Trial of the Wi-FI system has been going on for some time in Bhubaneswar, said a senior Railway Ministry official.
Rail users would be able to stream high definition videos while waiting for their respective trains at the railway station with Wi-Fi becoming operational.
Under the Digital India initiative, Railways is committed to providing better internet facilities to passengers at 100 busiest stations by the end of this year.
Besides Bhubaneswar, trials are going on at about 10 more stations including Jaipur, Patna, Ranchi, Ernakulum, Allahabad, Lucknow and Guwahati to have the Wi-Fi service shortly.
Railtel, a PSU of the Railways, in collaboration with Google, is providing free Wi-Fi service at stations. Eventually, the service will be rolled out at 400 stations across the country covering all major rail premises. Railtel owns a Pan-India optic fiber network exclusively on railway track. It has laid out over 45,000 kms of optic fibre networks across the country, which Google will utilise for its Wi-Fi service.
The network is built for wide coverage and high capacity usage unlike a typical Wi-Fi hotspot which offers connectivity in limited area.
As per the plan, Railtel will be the ISP, while Google will provide the Wireless Area Networks (WAN) and will set-up the points of access at platforms.
(With PTI inputs)
The woman, Ayesha Khatun, gave birth to a baby boy at 4.55 pm with the assistance of Meri Saheli team, a special group of volunteers formed by railways for providing assistance to woman passengers.
According to sources, Ayesha was travelling in coach No S-4 of Howrah-Yesvantpur Express (02245) with her husband Samed Ali and mother-in-law when she developed labour pain.
Following instructions from station superintendent of Bhubaneswar, RPF woman sub-inspector Sachala Pradhan and a Meri Saheli team rushed to attend to the woman.
After the train arrived at Platform No -5 at 4.44 pm, Meri Saheli team isolated the woman passenger and helped her deliver the child. She gave birth to a male child at 4.55 pm.
Subsequently, the Railway doctor and staff attended the woman and the newborn. As per suggestion of the doctor, the woman and newborn were shifted to the Capital Hospital for further treatment.
K Sethi, inspector-in-charge, RPF Bhubaneswar, said, “I would like to thank Meri Saheli team for helping an expectant mother deliver child inside a train. Our railway doctor attended both the mother and newborn and has said they are healthy. As the newborn cannot travel in the train, the duo was sent to Capital hospital for further care.”
As most of the trains and buses have been cancelled, many are still stranded at railway station and bus terminals.
"We lived here with much difficulty in the last two days. We are leaving the city as we don't have things to cook and eat. Besides, it is extremely difficult to buy vegetables due to the skyrocketing prices after the cyclone," said one of the village-bound Bhubaneswar residents.
"We will get at least water from either wells or tube wells in our village as we don't have even that facility here," said another person.
Another person said, "We have to pay extra for water. The water bottles which cost Rs 10 usually are being sold for Rs 15. As the ATMs are not functional we don't even have much cash in hand. Therefore, we are forced to go to the village."
On the other hand, Debasis Nayak, spokesperson of All Odisha Private Bus Owners' Association, said that the situation will become normal soon. "Some buses were cancelled due to the cyclone. However, most of them have now become operational," said Nayak.
Senior officials informed that chain pulling is one of the major factors for the delayed operation of trains at the national-level. Moreover, in most cases alarm chains are pulled by passengers for many trivial reasons.
Despite being punishable under the Railway Act, passengers do not hesitate in stopping the trains by pulling alarm chains even if there is no such emergency situation.
During the awareness campaign, the passengers were asked to use the Railways Security Helpline number 182 which is functional round the clock.
"Though Bhubaneswar railway station has witnessed less chain pulling cases compared to other stations, we are organising such awareness drive to ensure zero chain pulling here," said RPF inspector-in-charge Kalu Sethy.
The passengers can also alert the RPF and register their complaint by dialing to RPF security helpline number 182, Sethy added.
" In maximum cases, we have noticed that passengers who arrive late at the station are engaged in chain pulling incidents. The special campaign has been launched to raise awareness among the passengers so that they can use the facility only in case of emergency, " said Chittaranjan Das, the station manager.
"The passengers are being advised to reach the station at least 20 minutes in advance so that there is no rush and they can board trains without hassles, " Das added.
The entire incident was captured on CCTV, a video of which has gone viral on social media.
In the video, one Nazir Mallik can be seen trying to get off the departing Bhubaneswar-Bhadrak MEMU Passenger Train. During the attempt, Mallik loses control and slips between the train and platform.
Later, the constable N B Rao, who was present at the spot, immediately rushes to Mallik’s help and saves his life.
Meanwhile, Rao is being praised by many people for his alertness after the video went viral on social media today. Mallik is reportedly a resident of Purba Medinipur area in West Bengal.
“We are working along with the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) for the tracking and registration of the passengers here. Exist from Platform No. 6 of the railway station has been stopped while arrangements for both entry and exist have been made at Platform No. 1,” Nayak said.
He further said the officials of the BMC and CRPF jawans have been deployed at the PF No. 1 of the railway station to ensure that no West Bengal returnees can escape to avoid the mandatory quarantine norms of the State government.
A total of 30 trains from West Bengal are running through Odisha of which nine trains are to Bhubaneswar with a daily movement of around 5000-7000 passengers, he informed.
The Odisha government has made 14-day mandatory institutional or paid quarantine for people coming to Odisha from West Bengal by road or air. The move came after Triple Mutant variant of COVID-19 was reportedly among people in West Bengal.
Those who have received two doses of COVID-19 vaccine or have RTPCR negative report will be allowed home quarantine for 14 days, informed Chief Secretary Suresh Mohapatra on Thursday.
“Any person who has been successfully vaccinated (two doses) and produces certificate to the effect or tested Negative (-ve) in RT-PCR test (report to be produced) within 48 hours of entering Odisha, may be allowed home quarantine for 14 days. However, in case of non-compliance of the Covid protocols and Home quarantine guidelines issued by union health ministry and Odisha health department, such persons shall be quarantined in institutional facility for fourteen (14) days,” an official statement from the State Special Relief Commissioner.
ECoR Generl Manager Vidya Bhusan inaugurated the Segway facility at the railway station today. "With the introduction of this system, we aim to intensity the patrolling at the station. It will also be introduced in Puri and Cuttack railway stations," said Bhusan.
[caption id="attachment_416346" align="aligncenter" width="750"] ECoR Generl Manager Vidya Bhusan[/caption]
“The battery operated and eco-friendly Segway system will help RPF personnel move from one place to another during their patrolling duty at the station in less time and help crowd control,” an ECoR release read.
The new facility will also help the RPF personnel ensure safety of passengers and protection of Railway property as it will increase their mobility and response time. Apart from being helpful in ensuring more visible policing, the Segway system will help the force deal with theft, chain snatching and other such cases in an effective manner, it added.
Recently, the Segway patrolling system was introduced at the Visakhapatnam Railway Station to deal with the increase in traffic and passengers’ complaints.
People travelling to attend a public meeting hardly purchase tickets in any part of the country.
"Those passengers from Dhenkanal have set a good example for others. Their leader came to Bhubaneswar railway station and requested the authorities to provide them with more time to board the train," the official said.
The agitators, who were mostly tribal people, purchased 500 general tickets for Puri-Angul MEMU train to reach from Bhubaneswar to Dhenkanal on Tuesday, he said.
(PTI)
As per reports, the BMC authorities took stock of the arrangements made at Bhubaneswar Railway Station on Sunday.
As per arrangements, the passengers arriving from other States will now require to produce a COVID negative report (RT-PCR test report) or final vaccination certificate at the BMC kiosk set up at the station.
In case, any passenger does not have either of the reports, they will have to complete a registration process so that necessary tracking and follow up action by the health authorities.
“Local passengers will have unhindered access, only passengers from other States having high-Covid infections will have to go through this process. We have constituted six teams with two members each, to be deployed at the station,” informed Subhendu Sahu, Deputy Commissioner, BMC.
The entry and exit routes to the station have been changed. As per the BMC authorities, the passengers coming to the station will now enter from Master Canteen bus terminus side and exit will be from Reliance Fresh side.
Urging the passengers to cooperate with the authorities, Chittaranjan Nayak, Station Director of Bhubaneswar Railway Station said, “People will face problems with the specified entry-exit points, but we request them to bear with us so that we can effectively put surveillance measures at place.
(Edited by Vikash Sharma)