COVID-19: Maharashtra govt’s new guidelines for railway passengers arriving from six places

Arriving passengers being tested at LTT, Kurla on Monday. Pic/Sameer Markande

The Maharashtra government on Sunday night issued fresh guidelines for outstation railway passengers arriving in the state from six other places, including Kerala, Uttarakhand, Goa, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Delhi NCR.

Terming the five states and Delhi NCR as ‘places of sensitive origin,' the detailed guidelines ask the railways to segregate platforms of trains coming from there, start testing passengers onboard trains on their way here and install thermal scanners at all exit points. They also state that the passengers may be tested at exit points if they do not carry a negative report, and may be taken in local transport buses to their destinations.

Railway officials said that they are now following each of the guidelines and providing information of all incoming passengers from six states to the local disaster management authority and district collectors one day in advance, with details like name, age, gender, address at destination, mobile number and PNR.

On Western Railway, all nine terminating stations in Maharashtra that is Mumbai Central, Dadar, Andheri, Borivli, Dahanu Road, Palghar, Boisar, Virar and Vasai Road, the station superintendent and security in-charge have been made responsible for ensuring compliance to the new SOP and a list of staff with their contact numbers has been shared with district collectors.

On WR, there are thermal scanners at three stations and many are being procured for another seven stations.

All passengers deboarding at Maharashtra from these six states are being sent bulk messages to carry RT-PCR negative reports of the past 48 hours and posters regarding COVID appropriate behaviour have been displayed at stations with announcements about this.