New Delhi: In the wake of recent spate in
rail mishaps, Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi in Wednesday cracked
the whip asking all zonal heads to accord top priority to
safety measures even as a large number of safety related
posts lie vacant.
He said safety of train operations should be accorded
paramount importance and advocated zero tolerance towards lack
of passenger safety on board trains especially after the
recent fire incident in Doon Express.
Addressing a special conference of General Managers of
all zones on safety, Trivedi said the Railways has to ensure
strict adherence by all those concerned to all necessary
safety protocols.
Currently railways is facing about 80,000 safety related
vacant posts in various zones which have made the job more
tough for zonal railways.
According to sources, some zone heads sought to expedite
the process of filling up safety related posts.
Reviewing the entire gamut of safety matters zone wise,
Trivedi made it clear that no leniency should be shown to
those erring in implementing Railway Board safety norms.
Trivedi also said it is important that inquiries into
accidents and follow-up actions like fresh safety
instructions, remedial measures and punishment to erring
railway staff are completed within a fixed time frame.
"So that a strong signal to all railwaymen could be sent
that zero tolerance will be shown for such incidents," he
said.
The Railway Minister said that recommendations of
accident inquiries should be regularly reviewed by GMs along
with safety audits conducted by other zonal railway officials.
Trivedi pointed out that the measures adopted should be
more technology driven and less dependent on human
intervention.
He also asked the Railway Board and General Managers to
look into the human aspects in case of all ranks and files so
that the railwaymen feel well looked after and work hard to
maintain the very character of the Indian Railways.
PTI
