Navi Mumbai: The geo safety work of Konkan Railway Corporation Limited (KRVL) along its network, has brught down the number of boulder fall incidents on its route over the period. Newly joined Chairman and Managing Director of KRCL, Santosh Kumar Jha, on Thursday addressed the media and informed that around 672 patrol men have been deployed on the routes of KRCL at vulnerable spots to keep an eye on any loose boulder or any danger for the upcoming trains.
“Due to the excessive planning during the monsoons, we had only two incidents of boulder fall reported last year which too were of just 15 mm,” Jha said. In the year 2022, the incident reported were three, in 2021 two and in 2020, four cases were reported.
As a part of the monsoon preparation, in the month of April and May, they have been checking on the loose boulder, intensive cleaning of catch water drains and meticulous inspections of railway cuttings to fortify the network against adverse weather conditions.
“On vulnerable sections, speed restrictions will be imposed as a precautionary measure. There would be three speed limits- 12, 90 and 75- which would be implemented as per the sections. Strategic placement of BRN-mounted excavators and Rail Maintenance Vehicles at key locations will ensure swift emergency response capabilities,” Jha added. Railway's monsoon timetable would be effective from June 10 to October 31, due to the change in the sectional speed.
The control rooms in Belapur, Ratnagiri and Madgaon will be operational throughout the monsoon. Meanwhile, medical teams too would be available at six locations- Chiplun, Ratnagiri, Verna, Madgaon, Karwar and Udupi. Rail Maintenance Vans (RMVs) are stationed at nine locations- Veer, Chiplun, Ratnagiri, Rajapur, Kudal, Verna, Karwar, Bhatkal and Udupi- which would be used in any adverse condition due to monsoon. Meanwhile Tower Wagon and Excavators would also be made available at multiple railway stations.
KRCL also plans to increase the trains during the Ganapati festival. In the year 2018, there were 202 special trains during Ganapati, 217 trains in 2019, reduced to 194 in 2020 due to covid, 256 in 2021, 302 in 2022 and 305 trains in 2023. “This year, we would be trying to increase more trains than last year, during Ganapati festival,” Jha said.
