Key Highlights

• More than 70 special train trips: Western Railway is running them for the Diwali and Chhath Puja rush. Most go to Bihar, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh.
• 110 extra RPF personnel: 55 are posted at Ahmedabad, 40 at Sabarmati and 15 at Asarva. An additional RPSF company has also been sent to Ahmedabad station.
• Holding areas and queues: Passengers wait in holding areas and are walked to the platforms in queues at fixed times for boarding.
• Priority boarding: Women, persons with disabilities, senior citizens and passengers travelling with children are given priority.
• CCTV surveillance: Ahmedabad has 119 cameras and Sabarmati has 121. A proposal for 60 more cameras has been submitted.

Every year after Diwali, lakhs of migrant workers in Gujarat head home, and Ahmedabad's railway stations get some of the heaviest crowds of the season. Many of these workers keep the state's textile mills, construction sites, diamond units and factories running, and most of them are going to Bihar, Jharkhand, eastern Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal for Chhath Puja. For many families, Chhath matters more than any other festival of the year, so missing the train home is not an option. That is why platforms get so packed.

Western Railway's plan this season tries to handle that pressure in two ways: more trains, and tighter control of crowds at the stations.

More trains, more seats

The railway is running more than 70 trips of special trains, mostly towards northern and eastern India. Routes running this November include Sabarmati–Lalkuan, Asarva–Kanpur Central, Asarva–Agra Cantt, Bhuj–Bandra Terminus, Ahmedabad–Mangaluru Junction, Sabarmati–Haridwar, Ahmedabad–Darbhanga, Gandhidham–Bhagalpur, Sabarmati–Prayagraj, Ahmedabad–Mumbai Central, Ahmedabad–Malda Town, Asarva–Prayagraj and Ahmedabad–Rajgir. Extra coaches have also been attached to several regular trains.

The plan also accounts for trains that only pass through the city. Divisional Railway Manager Ved Prakash said, "The railway administration had also accounted for passengers travelling on around 20 to 25 through-passing trains arriving from Rajkot and Bhuj and passing through Ahmedabad and Sabarmati stations."

These trains often reach Ahmedabad already full of passengers from Saurashtra and Kutch, so there is less room for people boarding in the city.

From ticket counter to train door

The bigger change this year is how passengers are moved through the stations. The railway administration, the RPF, the Government Railway Police and the traffic police have drawn up a joint plan for Ahmedabad, Sabarmati and Asarva stations. Unreserved and reserved passengers are handled separately, and reserved passengers get an easier path from the station entrance to the platform and onto their train.

Unreserved passengers usually face the worst crowding. They now go to holding areas after buying tickets and are taken to the platform in queues at a set time. At Sabarmati, this queue system covers the whole route, from the ticket counter to the holding area, the platform and boarding.

The idea is to stop large crowds from rushing the platform when a train is announced, which is when stampede-like situations usually begin.

Security on and off camera

The three stations are getting 110 additional RPF personnel, and Ahmedabad also gets an extra company of the Railway Protection Special Force. Some RPF staff are working in plain clothes to prevent crimes against passengers. Officers and staff are on duty round the clock at all three stations, and CCTV control rooms are staffed at all hours to watch the 119 cameras at Ahmedabad and the 121 at Sabarmati. A proposal for 60 more cameras has been submitted.

Public address systems and loudhailers are telling passengers not to push or jostle, not to travel standing on train footboards, and not to accept food or drinks from strangers. Announcements also remind passengers to look after the safety of women and children during the journey.

Why it matters

For a migrant worker, the trip home for Chhath is often the most important journey of the year. That trip has often been unsafe, with packed general coaches, people hanging from footboards, and crushes on platforms. Gujarat has a large migrant workforce, so how well the crowds are handled has a direct effect on lakhs of people.

Whether the plan works will be clear as Chhath gets closer and passenger numbers peak. If holding areas, timed boarding and priority access for vulnerable passengers work well at Sabarmati and Ahmedabad, other busy junctions could use the same approach during festival seasons.

(With inputs from IANS)

Key Highlights

• More than 70 special train trips: Western Railway is running them for the Diwali and Chhath Puja rush. Most go to Bihar, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh.
• 110 extra RPF personnel: 55 are posted at Ahmedabad, 40 at Sabarmati and 15 at Asarva. An additional RPSF company has also been sent to Ahmedabad station.
• Holding areas and queues: Passengers wait in holding areas and are walked to the platforms in queues at fixed times for boarding.
• Priority boarding: Women, persons with disabilities, senior citizens and passengers travelling with children are given priority.
• CCTV surveillance: Ahmedabad has 119 cameras and Sabarmati has 121. A proposal for 60 more cameras has been submitted.

Every year after Diwali, lakhs of migrant workers in Gujarat head home, and Ahmedabad's railway stations get some of the heaviest crowds of the season. Many of these workers keep the state's textile mills, construction sites, diamond units and factories running, and most of them are going to Bihar, Jharkhand, eastern Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal for Chhath Puja. For many families, Chhath matters more than any other festival of the year, so missing the train home is not an option. That is why platforms get so packed.

Western Railway's plan this season tries to handle that pressure in two ways: more trains, and tighter control of crowds at the stations.

More trains, more seats

The railway is running more than 70 trips of special trains, mostly towards northern and eastern India. Routes running this November include Sabarmati–Lalkuan, Asarva–Kanpur Central, Asarva–Agra Cantt, Bhuj–Bandra Terminus, Ahmedabad–Mangaluru Junction, Sabarmati–Haridwar, Ahmedabad–Darbhanga, Gandhidham–Bhagalpur, Sabarmati–Prayagraj, Ahmedabad–Mumbai Central, Ahmedabad–Malda Town, Asarva–Prayagraj and Ahmedabad–Rajgir. Extra coaches have also been attached to several regular trains.

The plan also accounts for trains that only pass through the city. Divisional Railway Manager Ved Prakash said, "The railway administration had also accounted for passengers travelling on around 20 to 25 through-passing trains arriving from Rajkot and Bhuj and passing through Ahmedabad and Sabarmati stations."

These trains often reach Ahmedabad already full of passengers from Saurashtra and Kutch, so there is less room for people boarding in the city.

From ticket counter to train door

The bigger change this year is how passengers are moved through the stations. The railway administration, the RPF, the Government Railway Police and the traffic police have drawn up a joint plan for Ahmedabad, Sabarmati and Asarva stations. Unreserved and reserved passengers are handled separately, and reserved passengers get an easier path from the station entrance to the platform and onto their train.

Unreserved passengers usually face the worst crowding. They now go to holding areas after buying tickets and are taken to the platform in queues at a set time. At Sabarmati, this queue system covers the whole route, from the ticket counter to the holding area, the platform and boarding.

The idea is to stop large crowds from rushing the platform when a train is announced, which is when stampede-like situations usually begin.

Security on and off camera

The three stations are getting 110 additional RPF personnel, and Ahmedabad also gets an extra company of the Railway Protection Special Force. Some RPF staff are working in plain clothes to prevent crimes against passengers. Officers and staff are on duty round the clock at all three stations, and CCTV control rooms are staffed at all hours to watch the 119 cameras at Ahmedabad and the 121 at Sabarmati. A proposal for 60 more cameras has been submitted.

Public address systems and loudhailers are telling passengers not to push or jostle, not to travel standing on train footboards, and not to accept food or drinks from strangers. Announcements also remind passengers to look after the safety of women and children during the journey.

Why it matters

For a migrant worker, the trip home for Chhath is often the most important journey of the year. That trip has often been unsafe, with packed general coaches, people hanging from footboards, and crushes on platforms. Gujarat has a large migrant workforce, so how well the crowds are handled has a direct effect on lakhs of people.

Whether the plan works will be clear as Chhath gets closer and passenger numbers peak. If holding areas, timed boarding and priority access for vulnerable passengers work well at Sabarmati and Ahmedabad, other busy junctions could use the same approach during festival seasons.

(With inputs from IANS)