Trolley service for catering, polite uniformed staff and on-board entertainment are some of the changes slated to be introduced in Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains from October this year.

Aiming at enhancing the experience of passengers travelling by these premier trains, the Indian Railways has undertaken a complete makeover exercise in 30 trains – 15 Rajdhani and 15 Shatabdi – at an estimated cost of Rs 25 crore.

Sayara, 46, sits among the mourning women, her hand pressed closely against her chest as if to stop her heart from breaking. Her blue-grey eyes look at you, through you, beyond you. She is the mother of the young men who were lynched on Thursday evening on the train which runs from Delhi to Mathura.

One of her sons, Junaid, just 15 years old, was buried in the local cemetery yesterday in the village of Khandauli in Haryana. Junaid had been beaten and repeatedly stabbed. His bloodied body was thrown out of the train just before it reached Palwal.

Her elder son Shakir is in hospital grievously injured. He has three serious stab injuries. He was not in the group of four young men which had travelled to Delhi to shop for Eid. He had got an urgent call from a cousin who was with the group with the SOS that they were being attacked. Shakir rushed to the Ballabgarh railway station to help but found that his brothers Junaid and Hashim and his cousins were not being allowed to leave the train.

He desperately tried. Instead, he was pulled in and stabbed. He too was thrown out at Palwal. He was soaked in his own blood and that of his beloved younger brother’s whom he had tried to save.

Sayara’s third son Hashim escaped with two stab injuries. It was he who cradled his brother Junaid’s body on the station platform while a crowd of people stood and stared, until the ambulance called by someone took them away to a local hospital.

Sayara does not know all these details, but she knows her grief and her loss so when she speaks, her voice is clear. She says “He (Junaid) had come home after a year after completing his Madarsa course in Surat, Gujarat. Along with his brother, he was going to celebrate his achievement on the auspicious occasion of Eid. I had given them Rs. 1,500 to buy themselves new clothes. I curse myself. If I had not given them the money, he would have been here.. He was on the Roza fast. All my sons are fasting. I keep thinking, he did not have a sip of water, I was waiting here to feed them, but I could not give him his last morsel. My son, my son…” She is weeping, someone offers her a drink of water. She refuses, she too is fasting.

The group of four young men had got onto the train at Sadar Bazar, Delhi. Seats were available for all of them. The compartment started filling up. A group of men got on at Okhla station. The harassment began then. Junaid got up to seat an elderly man. But as soon as Junaid stood up, the others in his group who were sitting down were abused and told to stand up as well. Hashim’s skull cap was snatched off his head and stamped upon. His beard was pulled. The young man resisted. It was then that the beating started. They were abused in the most derogatory communal language. They were called “filthy beef-eaters who should be killed” Their mothers and sisters were abused.

The ongoing stir by the Jat community demanding grant of Other Backward Classes (OBC) reservation benefits to the community in Dholpur and Bharatpur has affected road and rail networks connecting to the cities.

Roads connecting Mahua, Agra, Bharatpur, Jaipur are blocked. State transport and private buses are being diverted to take alternative routes. Market in Bharatpur is closed to avoid any untoward incident, Superintendent of Police, Bharatpur Anil Kumar Tank said.

Sources said that Kaman, Bolkheda, Nadbai, Kumher, Khedli, Vehaj, Bandha, Bedham, Deeg, Garoli apart from Jaipur-Bharatpur highway are jammed due to ongoing agitation of Jat community members, who had blocked railway track between Bedham and Vehaj railway station yesterday.

The members are led by Jat leaders and Congress MLA Vishvendra Singh who are demanding reservation for Jats of Dholpur and Bharatpur districts.

“People are agitated and they don’t want any assurances. If the government is really willing to provide reservation to Jats in OBC, they should come to Bharatpur and give people in writing when it will be implemented,” Mr Singh told PTI.

He has said that Jats of Bharatpur and Dholpur have been demanding reservation since August 2015 but the demand has not been fulfilled yet.

Yesterday, OBC commission had submitted it’s report to the Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje after which Jats community members blocked railway tract following a decision taken in a Mahapanchayat.

State Social justice and empowerment minister Arun Chaturvedi had said that government is positive for providing reservation to Jats in Bharatpur and Dholpur and urged the community members to call off the protest.

He had said that the commission has submitted it’s recommendations and government would consider them with regards to OBC quota demands.

Members of the Jat community blocked the Mathura-Alwar railway line in the Bharatpur district of Rajasthan today demanding grant of OBC reservation benefits to the community in Dholpur and Bharatpur.

The blockade came as the state OBC commission submitted its report to chief minister Vasundhara Raje today.

The protesters were led by Congress MLA Vishvendra Singh who are demanding reservation for the Jats of Dholpur and Bharatpur districts.

“We have been demanding OBC reservation for Jats of Dholpur and Bharatpur for the last two years. From August 2015 till today, the long pending demand has not been fulfilled.

It is under rising pressure that the OBC Commission has submitted its report today. But, they have not declared when it will be implemented. We want government to come out clear,” Mr Singh told PTI.

He said that people are agitated and the blockade will continue tomorrow.

A GRP official said that a goods train was stopped by the agitators near Deeg in Bharatpur.

Earlier in the day, the state OBC commission submitted its report to chief minister Vasundhara Raje at her residence in Jaipur.

The commission chairman Jitendra Goyal submitted the report in the presence of Panchayti Raj and Rural development minister Rajendra Rathore, social justice and empowerment minister Arun Chaturvedi and vice chairman of the ’20 point programme’ Digambar Singh.

Meanwhile, Rajasthan’s Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Arun Chaturvedi urged the community members to call off the protest.

He said the Jats should withdraw their agitation as the OBC commission today presented its report to the state government.

The minister said the state government would consider the recommendations of the commission with regards to the quota to Jats in Bharatpur and Dholpur districts.

Mr Chaturvedi said the state government is positive for reservation to Jats.

Shobha Mote is a constable attached to the Railway Protection Force. Little did she know that she was about to help deliver a child at the station – her second such experience.

Mote was manning the scanning machine at Thane station. Mote heard a woman wince in pain on the platform.

As she approached the woman, she realised that the woman was going in labour. Mote immediately arranged for a first aid kit and a blanket to help the woman.

The woman, 24-year-old Meenakshi Sandesh Jadhav, is a resident of Badlapur. Her husband Sandesh, who is a driver, said that they registered her name with Ghatkopar-based Rajawadi hospital. Meenakshi was not due to deliver for another 25 days.

“As my sister stays in Ghatkopar we planned to shift to her residence. But last evening Meenakshi went in labour, so I asked my mother to get her to Thane from were I would drive her to the hospital. take them in my car,” added Sandesh 29, who claims that incidentally his first child was born in an auto-rickshaw.

Mote, had earlier helped deliver a baby at CST when she was posted there. Post the delivery Meenakshi was shifted to Thane Civil hospital and her condition is stable.

As part of the agreement, the institutes will engage in a series of activities to build the capacity of railway personnel by integrating heritage perspectives in their training and work practices.

To conserve, preserve and manage the Indian Railways’ old and rich heritage, the Centre for Heritage Management (CHM) at Ahmedabad University (AU) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Indian Railways Institute of Civil Engineering (IRICEN). The MoU aims to establish a long–term partnership in knowledge generation and collaboration. As part of the agreement, the institutes will engage in a series of activities to build the capacity of railway personnel by integrating heritage perspectives in their training and work practices.

To conserve, preserve and manage the Indian Railways’ old and rich heritage, the Centre for Heritage Management (CHM) at Ahmedabad University (AU) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Indian Railways Institute of Civil Engineering (IRICEN). The MoU aims to establish a long–term partnership in knowledge generation and collaboration. As part of the agreement, the institutes will engage in a series of activities to build the capacity of railway personnel by integrating heritage perspectives in their training and work practices.

Passengers will now be involved in judging cleanliness level of popular trains including Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duronto as well as major stations across the country.

Focusing on cleanliness and hygienic conditions on premises, which has been a problematic area for it, the Railways will undertake a detailed survey cum audit of 407 busy stations and about 200 trains shortly.

A passenger can send photos related to cleanliness in trains and stations to a central control room to be set up soon, said a senior Railway Ministry official involved with the cleanliness drive.

From the passengers’ feedback, popular trains will also be audited for on-board housekeeping services, linen quality, toilet condition, disposal of waste and pest control system.

Trains and stations will be given ranking as per the survey results, he said.

The aim is to involve passengers in creating awareness about cleanliness on rail premises and also to keep it as a focused area for concerned staff, the official said.

Apart from all the premier trains, services of all Jan Shatabdi, Samparkkranti and inter-city trains will also be involved in the survey.

Earlier, the Railways had undertaken a passenger feedback survey to evaluate cleanliness levels of major stations through IRCTC last year.

The survey was conducted by a professional market research agency engaged by IRCTC. It commenced in January, 2016 and the field data was collected by February, 2016.

The final report of the survey along with detailed analysis was presented to the Railway Board on June, 2016.

Based on the recommendations and the way forward given in the report for improving cleanliness standards at major stations, the Railways had issued guidelines to all zones in July, 2016 to undertake focused actions in relevant areas for improvement.

As per the survey mechanism, there will be a sample size of about 50 passengers for premium trains and 30 passengers per journey for other trains.

At least four rakes for each train should be covered, said the official.

They are the premium trains in India. Rajdhani and Shatabdi Express were started to move people who could afford to pay more for a somewhat luxurious travel.

But after years of service, the trains have lost their sheen. The service has deteriorated, the cleanliness is missing, quality of food has suffered.

After years of complaints by the travelling public, the premium trains are now set for a makeover. The Railway Ministry is to launch “Operation Swarn” to improve services in Rajdhani and Shatabdi Express trains.

A senior Railway Ministry official, who did not wish to be named, told IANS: “The railways have decided to launch Operation Swarn (or ‘gold’) to refurbish its services after several complaints by passengers like delay in train arrival, sanitation and quality of food.”

Under the project, the Indian Railways will focus attention on 10 key areas — punctuality, cleanliness, linen, coach interiors, toilets, catering, staff behaviour, security, entertainment, housekeeping and regular feedback.

The Ministry official also said the plan will be upgraded in future with services like Wi-Fi, infotainment screens (that were first provided in Tejas Express) and coffee vending machines.

The modified trains will also have improved coach interiors, better furnishing and new comfortable seats.

The official said an amount of Rs. 50 lakh will be allotted to each Rajdhani and Shatabdi train on various routes for the revamp. To monitor the work, two committees will be formed.

In May, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu launched the first high-speed premium train Tejas Express between Mumbai and Karnali in Goa.

The premium train was loaded with features like LCD screen on every seat, improved interiors, coffee vending machines, automatic doors, fire repression system, bio-vacuum toilets, attendant call buttons, reading LED lights, and others. Tejas Express also offers free Wi-FI connectivity.

The train was designed to travel at 200 kmph but keeping in view the track conditions in the Konkan region, the speed was limited to 130 kmph.

Earlier this year, the railways launched a new series of fully air-conditioned express trains like Humsafar, Mahamana and Gatimaan for overnight travel.

Humsafar Express is equipped with features like CCTV cameras, coffee vending machines, fire and smoke detection systems, new interiors with comfortable seats.

The Mahamana Express has ergonomically designed ladders for climbing to upper berths, snack tables for side berths, windows with powered venetian blinds and roller blinds, LED lights as berth indicators, LED reading lights, fire extinguishers in all coaches and an electrically operated chimney in the pantry car.

The railways will launch shortly its redesigned e-tendering system with more user-friendly new features to facilitate digital participation of over 60,000 vendors.