There is no solution to the plight of daily commuters in trains running in the state of Kerala. It is not possible to even stand up straight let alone sit in the overcrowded morning trains. Two passengers collapsing due to uncontrolled congestion in the Venad Express on Monday is not the first of such incidents. It is common for passengers to pass out in the rush of the late Parasuram Express. Thiruvananthapuram railway division officials have indicated that there is not going to be a solution to this plight in the near future. The subject is not getting due consideration as it is only the passengers and their organisations who regularly raise the issue. Though the railways is a central department, there is a minister in the state cabinet for the same. It is not certain whether even the railway passengers in Kerala remember the name of this minister. This minister is that inaccessible.
The railways also know that the travel woes will be tenfold on Monday following the Onam rush and the Onam holidays of educational institutions. Arrangements accordingly should be reasonably made. Shouldn't the railways, which run summer specials as customary during the summer vacation whether passengers are present or not, consider local needs as well? When will the attitude of the railways, which treat passengers as cattle herds, change? This is the time when the national highway is being rebuilt from the south to the northern end of Kerala. Many people have given up bus travel due to this. So there is a huge rush in trains even on normal days. Kerala is at the forefront of generating revenue for railways in the country. Yet, the train passengers here are suffering.
We also have a lot of MPs. Travelling only by plane and car, they have no knowledge of the hardships that ordinary train passengers face. The truth is that even though there are people who are very influential in Delhi and have been union ministers, not a single step has been taken to make petitions on a public issue like this come to fruition.
The main reason for the crisis faced by the railway passengers in Kerala is that only long-distance trains are given priority. There are no additional services for short-distance passengers if the Palaruvi, Venad, Parasuram and Sabari Express, which runs northwards in the morning, are excluded. Many of the passenger and MEMU services that were plying between Kollam and Ernakulam have been stopped. Despite the fact that the double track from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasargod is a reality, it is not possible to run enough passenger trains. More services can be run if the signalling is modified. A plan to install automatic signals on the Thiruvananthapuram-Chengannur route was prepared several years ago for this purpose. The project, which was estimated to cost only Rs 3,000 crore, could have been extended to Ernakulam. Sadly, some people can knock down any project that will be of great benefit to the people.
If the misery of daily commuters in Kerala is to end, there should be passenger trains and MEMU services at regular intervals. At least those services that were stopped during the Covid period should be fully restored. According to railway officials, there is technical difficulty in installing additional coaches in trains like Venad. What should be done then? The interval should be calculated and the possibility of new services should be checked. It should be kept in mind that it is not a matter of pleasure for the railways that passengers boarding the train with their tickets are collapsing in the rush.