YTSK

(Mathrubhumi Pathanamthitta dt 1-12-2014)

Parking facility by Kudumbasree

(Mathrubhumi dt 30-11-2014)

(Malayala Manorama dt 30-11-2014)

Chair cars to replace Sleeper coaches

(The Hindu dt 29-11-2014)

No basic facilities at Edappally stn

Railway passengers from Edappally have approached authorities demanding better amenities at the station. Commissioned decades ago, the station still doesn't have basic facilities such as roof, chairs and drinking water.
“Authorities said they were planning to set up better facilities at the station through the public-private participation mode. We have now decided to approach major firms, institutions and companies in the area to take up the initiative,“ said R D Manikandan, committee member, Edappally railway passengers' association.
The association has also urged immediate action to issue a no-objection certificate to complete the road next to platform one. “Though Rs 20 lakh has been approved for it, the road work has been pending for years,“ he added.
(Times of India dt 28-11-2014)

Current Reservation Facility in Thrissur

(Malayala Manorama dt 28-11-2014)

(Malayala Manorama Metro dt 27-11-2014)

(Mathrubhumi dt 27-11-2014)

(Malayala Manorama dt 27-11-2014)

(Kerala kaumudi dt 27-11-2014)

(Madhyamam dt 27-11-2014)

(Mangalam dt 27-11-2014)

Guruvayur - Ernakulam Passenger

(Mathrubhumi Kochi Nagaram dt 25-11-2014)

Late running of Passenger trains

(Madhyamam dt 21-11-2014)

Loop line speed

(Kerala Kaumudi dt 21-11-2014)

Budget Proposals

(The Hindu dt 23-11-2014)

(Mangalam dt 21-11-2014)

(Madhyamam dt 21-11-2014)

(Kerala Kaumudi dt 21-11-2014)

(Mathrubhumi dt 21-11-2014)

Intercity to Salem?

(The Hindu dt 20-11-2014)

Bill offers no compensation for accidental fall off trains

The proposed Railways amendment bill will deprive compensation to several passengers in case of accidental fall from the train, according to legal experts. The bill which is being introduced in the form of an amendment to the Railways Act, 1989 seeks to shift the onus of proving responsibility of accidents on to the passengers from the Railways.
The `statement of objects and reasons' attached with the bill recalls that as per the existing Railways Act cases of `the accidental falling' of any passenger from a train carrying passengers has been included in the definition of `untoward incident'.

“Most of the cases of `the accidental falling' happen because of negligence, carelessness and misadventure on the part of the passengers while entraining and detraining a moving train knowing that any accident may take place.However, railways are being made liable to pay compensation even when there is no fault on its part,'' the statement argues.

According to the statement, the bill is meant to ensure that the Railways become liable to pay compensation in cases of `accidental falling' only when its fault is established. The bill also states that the passengers or their legal heirs have to establish that they (the victims) have taken “reasonable care and precaution to avoid occurrence of such incident''.

Francis Kurian, a leading legal practitioner points out that it would be difficult to establish that the passengers have taken reasonable care.This becomes acutely complicated especially when the pas senger is dead, he said.

Strongly objecting to these provisions in the bill, P Krishnakumar, general secretary, Thrissur Railway Passengers' Association, said “People are forced to board crowded trains and most of them stand near the doors due to space crunch. It is the responsibility of the Railways to introduce safety devices like automatic doors , similar to the ones in metro rail coaches. The passengers should not be asked to pay the price for the failure of the Railways to take safety measures.''
(T.Ramavarman, Times of India dt 9-11-2014)

Declaration not required for renewal

(Mathrubhumi dt 7-11-2014)
Declaration not necessary for renewing season tickets
The railway has done away with the practice of insisting on declaration forms while renewing season tickets. The declaration, however, will have to be submitted when the season ticket is bought for the first time.
Besides providing details like address, father’s name and purpose of journey among other personal information, commuters will have to declare in the form that the railway has the authority to cancel or not renew the season ticket if the holder violates any railway rule. TOI had demanded in its various reports to discontinue the practice.
Commuters have also been demanding an end to the practice. “This is a senseless exercise. If they are keen to have details of commuters, they should maintain a record when the forms are submitted for the first time,” Thrissur railway passengers association general secretary P Krishnakumar said.
The railway itself had maintained that its officials hardly go through the forms stacked up in cupboards.
The order to this effect was issued on Thursday. The railway had recently stopped the practice of insisting on a photocopy of the identity card while renewing the season tickets.
Officials said instances of misuse of season tickets had come down after declaration forms were made mandatory.
“Passengers cannot travel more than 150 km with a season ticket but we have come across instances of people buying separate season tickets to travel beyond the stipulated distance. Most of them were traders and courier boys,” a senior official from the Thiruvananthapuram railway division said.
(PV Shyam, Times of India dt 7-11-2014)

Commuters seek extra coaches

Daily commuters to Kochi have demanded an extra compartment in outstation trains as services of two passenger trains have been curtailed due to maintenance work. Passenger trains between Ernakulam and Shoranur were cancelled every Wednesday and Saturday since Diwali. “This will continue for another week or two depending on the progress of maintenance work,” said P Krishnakumar, general secretary, Thrissur Railway Passengers Association.
“Around 3,000 commuters depend on passenger trains for their daily journey. We had requested that Island Express (to Bangalore), which arrives after the Ernakulam-Shoranur passenger, can stop at stations to help these stranded passengers, but nothing happened. The train stops at Edappally and there is a rush. It is a just a partial solution,” he said.
Deepa K, a commuter from Shoranur, said: “It is quite harrowing as trains are extremely crowded.” Some passengers demanded that an extra coach be added to the Island Express and the Alappuzha-Chennai trains to handle this unprecedented rush.
Senior division operations manager Ashok Kumar said: “We cannot exceed the limit of permitted compartments for express trains. So we cannot add extra coaches. We have made a provision for the train to stop at Edappally. Stopping at each station is not possible as this will result in delays.
Passengers will have to choose other modes of transport because another week is required to complete the maintenance and girder work.”
(Times of India dt 2-11-2014)