Mumbai (PTI): Days after a stampede at the Bandra Terminus here, the Western Railway has said a penalty will be imposed if the luggage of passengers exceeds the permissible limit for their respective travel class and urged people not to overcrowd stations.

Each passenger is permitted to carry a certain amount of luggage without charge, but items such as scooters and bicycles, as well as consignments exceeding dimensions of 100 cm x 100 cm x 70 cm do not qualify for the free allowance, the WR said in a release on Tuesday.

"Western Railway urges all passengers to avoid overcrowding at stations and to enter premises only as necessary, in accordance with train schedules, while adhering to the established luggage limits," the release stated.

The step has taken to reduce congestion on platforms and facilitate smoother movement for passengers within the station premises, it said.

The Western Railway has appealed to all passengers to follow the rules pertaining to carrying the maximum limit of free luggage.

"The free allowance varies for different classes of travel. If the luggage exceeds the marginal free allowance, a penalty will be charged accordingly," the release said, adding the directive comes into effect immediately and will remain in force till November 8.

A significant rise has been witnessed in parcel bookings during the festive season, particularly at the parcel offices of the Bandra Terminus, Vapi, Valsad, Udhna and Surat, it said.

The WR noted that the volume of parcels kept stacked on platforms for loading in trains causes inconvenience in passenger movement.

Considering the safety and security of passengers, instructions have been issued not to stack the parcel consignments on platforms for a long duration before the scheduled departure of a train, the release said.

On Sunday, 10 persons were injured in a stampede during heavy rush to board the Gorakhpur-bound Antyodaya Express train at the Bandra Terminus in Mumbai.

The Western Railway has already implemented temporary restrictions on the sale of platform tickets at select major stations, effective till November 8.

 

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.



Bareilly (UP), Nov 24: Three people died when their car fell into the Ramganga river from a partially constructed bridge here on Sunday, police said, adding that they suspect the driver was misled by its navigation system into taking the unsafe route.

The accident occurred around 10 am on the Khalpur-Dataganj road when the victims were travelling from Bareilly to Dataganj in the Badaun district, they said.

"Earlier this year, floods had caused the front portion of the bridge to collapse into the river, but this change had not been updated in the system," Circle Officer Ashutosh Shivam said.

The driver was using a navigation system and did not realise that the bridge was unsafe, driving the car off the damaged section, the police said.

There were no safety barriers or warning signs on the approach to the damaged bridge, leading to the fatal accident, Shivam said.

Upon receiving information, police teams from Faridpur, Bareilly and Dataganj police station rushed to the spot. They recovered the vehicle and the bodies from the river, Shivam added.

The circle officer said that bodies had been sent for post-mortem. Further investigation into the matter is underway.