A major mishap was averted when the driver of Toofan Express detected a fire in the parcel coach and immediately detached it from other bogies, an Eastern Railway official said.

There was no injury or casualty to any passenger of the train, and only the parcel coach was affected in the fire that occurred between Mugma and Thaparnagar stations of Asansol division of Eastern Railway, the official said.

A separate engine was called in to take back the train to Mugma, from where it will proceed to its destination after lines are cleared, the official added.

From the ticket collector to the station superintendent, from the enquiry counter to the station master and even pointsman – it’s an all-women show all the way at Jaipur’s Gandhinagar train station. Starting today, all the operations will be handled by the station’s staff of 40 women.

“The entire activity on the railway station will be managed by women, that includes operations, which basically means operating the panel where you align the tracks according to the route of the trains. Then there are commercial operations like selling of tickets and ticket collection,” says Soumya Mathur, Divisional Railway Manager, Jaipur.

“The third major function is security,” adds Ms Mathur, “so we will have lady constables patrolling the platforms.”

In fact, to support the all-women crew, the Railway Protection Force, or RPF, has decided to post 11 women police personnel at the police station attached to the railway station.

What makes the Gandhinagar station unique is that it is on the main line between Jaipur and Delhi. Twenty-five trains stop here daily, including high-end tourist trains like Palace On Wheels and the Maharajas’ Express. Fifty trains pass the station each day, including high-speed ones like the Rajdhani and the Shatabdi. The station sees upwards of 7,000 passengers pass through it each day.

But the women who work at Gandhinagar railway station say they are geared up for the challenge. They will work two eight-hour shifts in rotation.

“Train movement is my job: which train is to be received on which track,” explains station master Angel Stella as she waves a green flag to allow a passing goods train. “All trains are important to us whether passenger or goods. The safety of so many people depends on us and goods worth crores are transported by train, so our main aim is to facilitate the safe movement of trains.”

Asked whether she’s worried about troublemakers at the railway station, Ms Stella shakes her head. “Doesn’t matter,” she says, “women are not less than anyone.”

A 23-year-old man died after he was kicked out of a moving train by another passenger, without any apparent provocation, near Sukhi Sewania railway station on the outskirts of Bhopal, railway police said today.

Ritesh, the victim, was sitting near the door of a general coach of the Kamayani Express yesterday when Rajmal Pal aka Rajju (27) kicked him out, said a Government Railway Police (GRP) official.

According to Ritesh’s cousin who was accompanying him, Rajmal said before kicking Ritesh that ‘I am going to die anyway, so I am killing you’.

The victim and the accused didn’t know each other, nor was there any dispute between them before the incident which could have acted as a trigger, said Hemant Shrivastava, in-charge, GRP police station, Bhopal.

“Ritesh and his cousin Sumit Singh were sitting near the door as they had to get down at Bhopal. The accused kicked Ritesh who fell off the running train and died on the spot,” the GRP official said.

Sumit Singh told police that Rajmal emerged from the toilet and said to Ritesh, “Mujhe to marnaa hi hai, is-liye tujhe maar raha hoon (I have to die anyway, so I am killing you),” and then kicked him out before others understood what was happening.

Further investigations are underway,” Hemant Shrivastava said.

Sukhi Sewania police station in-charge Mahendra Mishra said that Rajmal was returning from Allahabad after performing the last rites of his mother. Ritesh and Sumit were travelling from Allahabad to Bhopal for a wedding.

The Railways will provide space for electric vehicle charging stations at the parking lots of train stations to promote the use of green energy.

To begin with, the parking lots at the New Delhi and Nizamuddin railway stations in the capital have been identified to set up e-vehicle (EV) charging spots and “necessary preparations” are underway, according to a senior Railway Ministry official.

According to the plan, there will be five fast-charging DC points capable of charging 10 cars simultaneously at a dedicated place in the parking lots of the two railway stations.

While an AC charger takes around six hours to charge an EV, the DC chargers are faster and take only around 40 minutes to an hour to fully charge a vehicle.

According to the Railway Ministry official, the charging points at the two stations will be set up by BSES – Rajdhani Power Ltd (BRPL).

The scope of work includes funding, procurement and construction, operation and maintenance of the electric charging station infrastructure. It will cost about Rs 15 lakh to provide charging infrastructure at each station parking lot – at Rs. 3 lakh per charging point.

“An effective charging infrastructure is required for creating the ecosystem for EVs to operate smoothly. And the lack of charging facilities inhibits the growth of e-vehicles in the city,” said the official.

BRPL, which will operate the charging stations, will price the power at Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) tariffs.

The EV charging points at the two railway stations will not only generate revenue for the national transporter, it will also reduce emission of greenhouse gases, “thereby reducing Indian Railways’ carbon footprint and helping the country achieve targets set in Paris Agreement for combating climate change”, said the official.

The Railways efforts are also expected to contribute towards helping the highly polluted capital to breathe a little easier, he added.

The Railways will allocate parking spaces at the station parking lots and will continue to collect parking fees from the vehicle owners as usual.

The promotion of EVs is a strategic goal for the National Democratic Alliance government, which is keen to cut the country’s oil imports.

The Railways is also phasing out diesel engines and replacing them with electric locos to reduce fossil fuel consumption. Besides, the state-run transporter is also promoting solar and wind energy in a gradual manner.

Indian Railways has made the online booking of train coaches for special occasions like marriage party or tour easier. According to a circular by the Railway Board, booking of special trains, coaches, saloons on full tariff rate (FTR) shall now be booked through a ‘single window booking system’ of the Indian Railway Tourism and Catering Corporation (IRCTC). Passengers seeking to book trains/coaches on full tariff rate need to approach the IRCTC and the IRCTC will book trains/coaches online on behalf of him/her, stated the circular. IRCTC is the online ticketing arm of Indian Railways.

Here are 5 things to know about Indian Railways booking for special occasions:

1. Any individual/party/government/agency wanting to book trains/coaches/saloons on FTR can approach IRCTC and IRCTC will place indent online on behalf of the individual/party for booking of special trains/coaches on FTR, said the circular.

2. IRCTC shall levy facilitation charges at 5 per cent of total fare for booking of special trains/coaches/saloons on FTR, on behalf of individual/party for co-ordination work, the circular added.

3. According to Indian Railways, priority shall be accorded for booking of special trains/coaches/saloons on FTR over extra coaches to clear waitlisted passengers.

4. Registration of special trains/coaches/saloons shall be made minimum one month in advance and not before six months of the date of proposed journey. Registration in period short of one month shall require special permission of the CPTM of the zonal railways on a case to case basis, the circular further added.

5. Indian Railways has fixed a security deposit of Rs. 50,000 per coach and for special trains a minimum of 18 coaches will be charged. The entire transaction in the new online system will have to be digital, the board said.

The Railways will provide space for electric vehicle charging stations at the parking lots of train stations to promote the use of green energy. To begin with, the parking lots at the New Delhi and Nizamuddin railway stations in the capital have been identified to set up e-vehicle (EV) charging spots and “necessary preparations” are underway, according to a senior Railway Ministry official. According to the plan, there will be five fast-charging DC points capable of charging 10 cars simultaneously at a dedicated place in the parking lots of the two railway stations. While an AC charger takes around six hours to charge an EV, the DC chargers are faster and take only around 40 minutes to an hour to fully charge a vehicle.

According to the Railway Ministry official, the charging points at the two stations will be set up by BSES – Rajdhani Power Ltd (BRPL).

The scope of work includes funding, procurement and construction, operation and maintenance of the electric charging station infrastructure. It will cost about ₹ 15 lakh to provide charging infrastructure at each station parking lot – at ₹ 3 lakh per charging point.

“An effective charging infrastructure is required for creating the ecosystem for EVs to operate smoothly. And the lack of charging facilities inhibits the growth of e-vehicles in the city,” said the official.

BRPL, which will operate the charging stations, will price the power at Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) tariffs.

The EV charging points at the two railway stations will not only generate revenue for the national transporter, it will also reduce emission of green house gases, “thereby reducing Indian Railways’ carbon footprint and helping the country achieve targets set in Paris Agreement for combating climate change”, said the official.

The Railways efforts are also expected to contribute towards helping the highly polluted capital to breathe a little easier, he added.

The Railways will allocate parking spaces at the station parking lots and will continue to collect parking fees from the vehicle owners as usual.

The promotion of EVs is a strategic goal for the National Democratic Alliance government, which is keen to cut the country’s oil imports.

The Railways is also phasing out diesel engines and replacing them with electric locos to reduce fossil fuel consumption. Besides, the state-run transporter is also promoting solar and wind energy in a gradual manner.

The Railways will provide space for electric vehicle charging stations at the parking lots of train stations to promote the use of green energy.

To begin with, the parking lots at the New Delhi and Nizamuddin railway stations in the capital have been identified to set up e-vehicle (EV) charging spots and “necessary preparations” are underway, according to a senior Railway Ministry official.

According to the plan, there will be five fast-charging DC points capable of charging 10 cars simultaneously at a dedicated place in the parking lots of the two railway stations.

While an AC charger takes around six hours to charge an EV, the DC chargers are faster and take only around 40 minutes to an hour to fully charge a vehicle.

According to the Railway Ministry official, the charging points at the two stations will be set up by BSES – Rajdhani Power Ltd (BRPL).

The scope of work includes funding, procurement and construction, operation and maintenance of the electric charging station infrastructure. It will cost about Rs. 15 lakh to provide charging infrastructure at each station parking lot – at Rs. 3 lakh per charging point.

“An effective charging infrastructure is required for creating the ecosystem for EVs to operate smoothly. And the lack of charging facilities inhibits the growth of e-vehicles in the city,” said the official.

BRPL, which will operate the charging stations, will price the power at Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) tariffs.

The EV charging points at the two railway stations will not only generate revenue for the national transporter, it will also reduce emission of green house gases, “thereby reducing Indian Railways’ carbon footprint and helping the country achieve targets set in Paris Agreement for combating climate change”, said the official.

The Railways efforts are also expected to contribute towards helping the highly polluted capital to breathe a little easier, he added.

The Railways will allocate parking spaces at the station parking lots and will continue to collect parking fees from the vehicle owners as usual.

The promotion of EVs is a strategic goal for the National Democratic Alliance government, which is keen to cut the country’s oil imports.

The Railways is also phasing out diesel engines and replacing them with electric locos to reduce fossil fuel consumption. Besides, the state-run transporter is also promoting solar and wind energy in a gradual manner.

Indian Railways offers catering services at both stations and trains. Indian Railways catering services are owned by IRCTC and include tea/coffee, breakfast and standard meals. Official twitter handle of Ministry of Railways- @RailMinIndia posted a video on its timeline which shows the itemised price list of all items sold on Indian Railways, with the detailed specification of what it includes. According to the Railways Ministry, passengers can avail fresh, hygienic and healthy food and beverages at economical prices.

1. Janta meal includes seven pooris, aloo dry curry and pickle is priced at Rs. 15 on all stations and at Rs. 20 inside the rail coaches.

2. Coffee in disposable cups is priced at Rs. 7 on both stations and trains, while coffee in pots is sold for Rs. 15 at both places.

3. Packaged rail neer (1 litre) is available at Rs. 15 on both stations and trains and 500 ml of packaged rail neer is available at Rs. 10 on both stations and trains.

4. Standard tea is available at Rs. 5 on both stations and trains while tea with tea bags is priced at Rs. 7. Tea in pots is available at Rs. 10.

5. Standard casserole veg meal is priced at Rs. 45 on stations and Rs. 50 on trains.

6. Non veg casserole non veg meal is priced at Rs. 50 on stations and Rs. 55 on trains.

7. Veg breakfast (that has various options that include bread butter and cutlet, idli and vada, upma and vada or pongal and vada) priced at Rs. 25 on stations, and Rs. 30 on trains.

8. Non-veg breakfast (that includes bread, butter and omelet) is priced at Rs. 30 on all stations and Rs. 35 on trains.

9. Standard thali of veg meal, which is available only in AC rooms of stations, is available at Rs. 35.

10. Standard thali of non-veg meal is priced at Rs. 40 and is available only in AC rooms of stations.

Ministry of Railways has directed Zonal Railways to discontinue pasting of reservation charts on the reserved coaches of all trains at all erstwhile A1, A & B category stations as a pilot project for 6 months starting from 1 March, 2018. Physical/digital charts will continue to be displayed at the platform of the train. At those stations where electronic charts display plasma have been installed and the same are functioning properly, physical reservation charts at such platforms can be stopped.

Earlier, pasting of reservation charts on the reserved coaches of all trains was discontinued at New Delhi, Hazrat Nizamuddin, Mumbai Central, Chennai Central, Howrah and Sealdah Stations of Indian Railways on experimental basis for a period of 3 months.

Special trains

Indian Railways is set to operate Holi special trains to cater to high demand around the festival. The Central Railway has announced eight weekly trains between Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (Mumbai) to Barauni (Bihar) on special charges. The move is aimed to “clear the extra rush of passengers during Holi Festival”, the Central Railway said. This year, the Holi festival is on March 2. Bookings for train number 05540 will open from Friday, according to a press release dated February 14 by the Central Railway – which caters to one of the zones served by the Railways.

Jobs At Railways

Recently, Indian railways was in news for the 89,000 jobs that are up for grabs. A Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) employment notification has been issued earlier in the week for recruitment of 62,907 staff in Level 1 pay scale and out of these, apprentices trained in Railway establishments will be given preference to the tune of over 12,000 vacancies which is in line with the recent amendments made in the Apprentices Act, 1961. Another RRB notification of Ministry of Railways in a Centralized Employment Notification had also invited applications for filling up 26502 jobs in Post of Assistant Loco Pilot (ALP) & Technician Categories. The recruitment process of these jobs are also open now.