Thane: Two-hour search for 'girl lying near tracks' yields no 'body'

The search operation underway. Pic/ Shrikant Khuperkar

The stationmaster at Dombivli along with the Government Railway Police (GRP) and a few other staffers spent more than two hours on Wednesday walking 3km back and forth looking for an unidentified girl who was supposedly lying on the tracks between Dombivli and Thakurli, but could find no trace of her. They finally had to conclude that the information they received may have been correct, but the girl may have walked away as her injuries were not serious.

According to sources from Dombivli railway station, around 7.30pm a guard travelling on a Kalyan-CST local informed the stationmaster at Dombivli about a girl lying near the tracks between Thakurli and Dombivli station. Soon after the call, the assistant stationmaster along with a few other staffers, including four coolies left to search for her with two large torches.
The stationmaster said that after the call was received the officials along with the Dombivli GRP searched the entire length of track from Dombivli to Thakurli and back. "They searched the entire 3km area for more than two hours, but could find nothing. The guard who had informed us had not given us any specifics such as the girl's clothing or a pole number that could have helped us identify the spot," he said

An officer from Dombivli GRP said, "Our constable accompanied the railway officials on the search. The area is in completely darkness and every single suspicious spot was checked. We have reported the incident and suspect that it was correct information but the girl may have walked away as her injuries were minor."

The Thakurli and Kopar railway stations on the Central line don't have a stationmaster or other officials. During such emergencies, they have to depend on the Dombivli GRP and Dombivli stationmaster, which takes a lot of time to reach the spot.