Indian Railways strives to make Mumbai local safer for passengers, adopts rigorous sanitization process – Mint

The coaches of the Mumbai local trains need to be properly sanitised as a lot of people from various parts of Mumbai use them for transportation.

“In the initial phase of the nationwide lockdown, Western Railway began its 162 services with 18 rakes offered to traffic for emergency duty staff of State Govt., private health sector and railway staff from15 June last year,” Western Railway said in a statement.

“These services were gradually increased to 81 rakes with a total of1201 services at present. To run these services with utmost safety & precautions against COVID-19, Western Railway has adopted & implemented rigorous sanitization methods to ensure a safe journey for its commuters,” it added.

A senior railway official said,” Western Railway has taken steps such as, disinfection of passenger area and driving cab compartment, sanitization of repeated and common touch parts during maintenance, spreading awareness among commuters for maintaining social distance, etc. since the beginning of the emergency services for the safety of essential duty commuters and to prevent the spreading of COVID-19 pandemic.”

“The disinfection work of passenger area and D-cab of all 81 EMU rakes are being done regularly in stabling yards and carshed. A special team of 31 persons have been deputed for sanitization of EMU rakes at all EMU stabling yards, Mumbai Central Carshed, Kandivali Carshed and Virar Carshed. For the disinfection of rakes, about 10 to 12 liters of diluted disinfectant solution is used for each 12-car rake,” he added.

“Apart from these 81 rakes which undergo for maintenace at carsheds, proper sanitization of common touch areas viz. side partitions,grab handles, centre grab pole, door/windows latch-catch inside the passenger coach are also being ensured,” the railway official further added.

Besides this, in order to educate commuters for maintaining social distance during travelling stickers with text message “Please Do Not Sit Here” been pasted at the center of backrest seats.

Western Railway had already made thousands of floor markings to ensure social distancing at stations and platforms. All these efforts have enabled to prevent the spreading of COVID-19 pandemic.