Don't play 'petty politics' over Shramik Special trains: Railway union to Sonia Gandhi
New Delhi: The All India Railwaymen's Federation on Thursday appealed to Congress president Sonia Gandhi to refrain from indulging in "petty politics" over the fare of Shramik Special trains and said the Railways charged money to prevent overcrowding at stations.
In a letter to Gandhi, the Railways' largest union of workers said travelling during the coronavirus pandemic is dangerous but railway staffers are making it possible through their hard work.
"I request not to destabilise a good system which is enabling migrants to return home in 115 special trains because of petty momentary political gains," AIRF general secretary Shiv Gopal Mishra said in the letter to the Congress president.
Overcrowding at railway stations could lead to the spread of coronavirus, he said.
The Railways started running Shramik Special trains from May 1 to ferry home migrant labourers stranded away from their homes in different parts of the country.
Opposition parties have accused the government of charging money from the labourers for the train journey.
However, the government has said 85 per cent of the fare is being borne by the Railways and the remaining 15 per cent is borne by the state government on whose request a train is being run.
As of Wednesday, the Railways said it has ferried home over 1.35 lakh migrant workers in more than 140 Shramik Special trains.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
