Captain service launched in Karnataka Express train
Bengaluru, July 18 : The South Western Railway on Tuesday launched a Captain service in the Bengaluru-New Delhi Karnataka Express train to ensure comfortable journey to long-distance passengers, said an official.
"The senior-most train ticket examiner (TTE) will officiate as Captain of the train to look after passenger amenities and redress their grievances," said Bengaluru Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) R.S. Saxena while launching the service.
As a single point-man for about 2,000 passengers, the Captain will attend to complaints on cleanliness of coaches and toilets, water supply, functioning of fans, lights, charging points, air-conditioning and housekeeping.
"The Captain wears a red badge on his left hand to enable passengers identify and approach him for help during their 42-hour long journey. He will contact the staff concerned to address complaints on-board or at the next station," said Saxena.
The zonal railway will have a Captain in 76 express trains originating daily from Bengaluru to various destinations across the country.
"TTEs will look after the reserved coaches, while the Captain will supervise their working and attend to passengers in person or on mobile whose number will be messaged to them," said a statement from the divisional office.
Trains like Rajdhani Express, Duranto Express and Shatabdi Express, where train superintendents travel from end-to-end, will also have the senior-most nominated as Captain.
"We had introduced captains on a trial basis recently on Bengaluru-Kannur-Karwar express train and got favourable feedback on the service," added Saxena.
As one of the busiest railway stations, the Bengaluru city station daily handles about 210 trains, including about 109 to long-distances.
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Prime organiser of Messi event in Kolkata arrested over ‘mismanagement’ after stadium chaos
Kolkata (PTI): The police on Saturday arrested Satadru Datta, the prime organiser of the Lionel Messi football event at Salt Lake Stadium here, following widespread chaos at the venue, which prompted the Argentine World Cup-winning captain to leave the field early.
Taking suo motu cognisance of the stadium unrest, Datta was held by the Bidhannagar Police for “mismanagement” of the event from the Kolkata airport, where he had gone to see off Messi and his entourage on their way to Hyderabad.
"We are looking into whether there was any mismanagement from the organiser's side, which led to the chaos at the stadium. He has been detained, and the police have now brought the situation under control," West Bengal DGP Rajeev Kumar said at a press conference.
A senior police officer later confirmed that Dutta has been arrested. Till reports last received, the police were interrogating him and his manager inside one of the departure lounges of the airport.
The organiser has given in writing that he will refund the prices of tickets he sold to the disappointed spectators, Kumar said.
What was supposed to be a marquee football spectacle turned into widespread violence and disorder at the stadium after Messi’s brief and tightly ring-fenced appearance, his first at the venue since 2011, left large sections of the crowd frustrated, as they failed to catch a glimpse of their superstar despite having travelled from far and wide, paying hefty sums for tickets.
Police said they were also investigating how organisers allowed sale of bottled waters and beverages inside the stadium premises, which are banned items during such events.
Thousands of water bottles were used as missiles and lobbed inside the pitch by angry spectators, who also uprooted bucket seats from the gallery and used them as ammunition inside the field against the defending police and security personnel.
Spectators alleged that water bottles were being sold at a massive premium inside the stadium despite police disallowing such items from outside at the entry gates.
Police agreed there was an underlying tension in the galleries on account of Messi not showing his footballing skills on the field, which only got aggravated after a bunch of VIPs, including State Sports Minister Aroop Biswas and unidentified people, blocked the football icon’s view during the limited time he spent on the ground.
“We are on the job, and will ensure that whoever is responsible for what happened today at Salt Lake Stadium will be punished, and action will be taken against the authorities concerned,” said Jawed Shamim, ADG, Law and Order.
