Railway accidents on Mumbai local trains are increasing day by day and the one in Elphinstone is an eye opener for railways and the most gruesome one. The narrow foot over bridge is the cause for the stampede. Foot overbridge (FOB) of Elphinstone Road wherein 22 people died and 60 are understood to be injured after a fake call of the bridge collapse and that led to a stampede and resultant deaths that took place in the narrow bridge. Railway Minister Piyush Goel ordered an immediate inquiry and allowed Army to build up a new bridge in the record time as an additional commuter support. Such a disaster was expected for a very long time and after that stampede and deaths, authorities are focussing on beautifying suburban stations to provide the commuters with foot overbridges with wider space for the commuters to pass through it that way during the busy hours. It is a right step in the right direction in the Mumbai Infrastructure projects initiated in station upgradation in the city.
Jayanthi Ramani
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
