Not on track

dna speaks to Anand Vijay Jha, Senior Divisional Security Commissioner, RPF, WR
Local trains are the lifeline of Mumbaikars; as clichéd as this sounds, it is true that local trains are the most preferred mode of transport in the city. That's all the more reason for dna westcoast to check the extent of safety at the grass-roots level in our second week of the safety campaign.
Local trains have seen a seething increase in crime rate, though the RPF and the GRP have several initiatives and helplines for passengers and are trying really hard to ensure their safety. Here's looking into the role of the RPF:

We are very strict when it comes to the role that the RPF plays in ensuring the safety of passengers. This includes patrolling on stations, night patrolling in ladies' compartments and ensuring that railway property stays hawker-free. If an RPF jawan is on board in a ladies compartment during night patrolling, and in the same vicinity there are beggars or hawkers too, it is mandatory for the jawan to disembark them.

Patrolling by RPF officers is done in station premises and is extended in areas where there are cases of wire-cutting and stone-pelting. The RPF, however, is not responsible for offences such as mobile theft, as we don't have the jurisdiction.
Making FOBs hawker-free is necessary for two reasons. First, it is illegal and second, it hampers the safety of railway property. I have been threatened (via letters) by several lawyers, who are of the opinion that hawking on FOBs should not be stopped. My stand remains the same: I will not stop them (hawkers) provided I get a court order stating that hawking is allowed on railway FOBs. Absence of hawkers is essential; there have been incidents when some of their goods have fallen on the train passing below, and damaged certain parts of the train.

Apart from the problems that take place in ladies' compartments, a set of crimes also occur in men's compartments. A lot of male passengers complain about two harrowing problems—bullying and stealing including pickpocketing, snatching bags, mobile phones and other belongings.
Train bullies have been a tough problem to deal with, given the alarming number of cases that is coming to light. Unfortunately, not all passengers come forward to report instances of bullying.
Parichay Mehta, a Borivali resident, shares, "If you are not a daily passenger of a specific train, the only option is to board it from the first station; else getting in becomes very difficult. Moreover, when an occasional passenger like me boards a Virar-bound train, other passengers won't let me get down at Borivali. They even reason with you saying that there are several Borivali trains (so why should a Borivali resident board a Virar-bound train) and this happens even during non-peak hours, when the trains are not crowded."
In the last few months, a video has also surfaced on social media showing few passengers harassing and physically abusing a fellow passenger. There is an urgent need to crackdown on such bullies; shrugging off the matter won't help as it only encourages them. A solution for this is the presence of RPF and GRP officers dressed in civil clothes in peak-hour trains.

Recently, the RPF provided exclusive SIM cards to all female RPF constables to enable them to connect easily with female passengers. The number given to the constables is to be used to network with the passengers and collect maximum information. Jha adds, "I request all female passengers to go ahead and talk to these constables about their problems as it would help both ways."

"I feel safe in the trains only when it is not overcrowded and there is a cop, in the compartment, at night. I heard of many attacks that have happened in the past hence security personnel should be present in trains and on platforms near the ladies' compartments."
Carol Henriques, Andheri resident

"I do not feel safe while travelling in the local trains. They are unsafe for both men and women; even men are targets of mobile phone and wallet thefts inside the train and on the platform. It would help if there were more police on all stations and an easy way to register complaints."
Rajat Raju, Malad resident

I was travelling early morning from Goregoan to Churchgate in the ladies first-class compartment. When I reached Churchgate at around 7.15 a.m., I fortunately happened to check the indicator. The Borivali train that I had boarded from Goregoan had become a Vasai local at 7.14 a.m.; this was unusual so I remembered it. Once I reached college, I realised I had left my phone in the train. I rushed to Churchgate station and did not know what to do. A cop at the station asked me to call the railway police helpline number. I had no way to call them as the public phones at Churchgate station do not work. The friend who was accompanying me also did not have balance on her phone. We begged a girl at the station who complied with our request. I called the RPF and gave them the train's details; they asked to me to call them back in about half an hour.
The girl who lent her phone to us asked us to leave our contact details with her. In less than half an hour, we received a call from the girl on my friend's number. She asked us to call the cops back as they had found my phone and had kept it safely at the Dadar branch. The cops had dialled every number that I had tried calling from to get through to my phone. They even opened my phone list and rang my parents up to inform them and ask them to collect my phone. By then, I had left for the Dadar branch and finally collected my phone. The cops were very co-operative. I was surprised to see the ease with which they found my phone. I had to board a flight to Rajasthan the same day and had to coordinate with my friend for the same. Had I not found my phone, I wouldn't have been able to fly off to Rajasthan. The cops even told me how there were eight women in the compartment but no one had touched my phone.
-Riddhi Vartak, Goregaon resident

The time slot between 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. is when RPF jawans are required to man the ladies' compartments between Churchgate and Virar.
In the last nine months, disciplinary action (ranging from warning to dismissal) has been taken against 60 RPF personnel.
From June 1, Mumbai will get 550 new RPF personnel, who will provide a boost to the overall safety.

1311 is the emergency railway helpline number (WR).

9833312222 is the Nirbhaya helpline provided by the railway police.

M-Indicator has an m-Safety app that works as a panic button in case in danger.