21 July,2017 08:35 AM IST | Mumbai | Gaurav Sarkar
RPF does nothing despite woman calling eight times between Bandra and Churchgate to alert them about suspicious baggage on local she boarded at Andheri
Swati Sharma spotted this bag lying unattended in the coach and tried to alert the authorities
When Swati Sharma saw an unattended bag lying in the train, she did what any alert citizen should do - call the police. Instead of jumping to action, the cops hung up on her. When a railway police officer finally turned up, he asked her just one question: "Are you happy with our customer service?"
Swati Sharma boards a fast train from Andheri to Churchgate and spots an unattended bag on the overhead rack. There are only three other passengers in the coach, and all of them deny that it belongs to them. Illustration/Uday Mohite
Swati, an airhostess and resident of Lokhandwala, boarded a fast train from Andheri to Churchgate at 7.40 pm on Wednesday. "I noticed a bag lying on the overhead rack and looked around, there were only three people in the coach. I had a bad feeling about it. I asked the other passengers if the bag was theirs, but they refused," she told mid-day.
Also read: Unclaimed bag sparks bomb scare at Pathankot railway station
Swati calls the railway security helpline and gives the cops all the information they need - which train she was on, which compartment, a description of the bag and her personal details. Instead of promising action, the cops just hang up
The train had reached Bandra station (the first stop after Andheri on a fast train), when she dialled 182 for the railway security helpline. "A lady picked up the phone and I gave her all the information - which train I was on, which compartment, a description of the bag. But after giving all the information, she just disconnected the call," recalled Swati.
Swati calls back, but can't reach the officials. She calls a total of eight times before a man picks up and asks for all the information again
She called the helpline again, but could not reach the officials. When she made the eighth call, a man finally picked up and explained that the helpline had been experiencing some issues with calls getting dropped. He then asked her for the same information she had given to the woman cop earlier. "He started asking for descriptions of the bag and I asked him to send someone to first check the train. But he said nothing about what steps they would take," she said.
Also read: Abandoned bags put Mumbai airport on alert
At Churchgate station, an RPF officer finally meets her. She tells him to hurry and find the train. He has just one question for her: "Are you happy with our customer service?"
By this time, the train had arrived at Churchgate station, so Swati alighted and asked a few cops there for help. Once again, they paid no heed. She even went to the train driver and asked him to halt until the issue was resolved. "He said that once it was time for the train to depart, he would not be able to wait. I finally managed to catch the attention of a helpful cop by the name of Jadhav, who sprung into action, but by then the train had left the station," said Swati.
Late latif RPF
It was only after the train left that Swati received a call from a man who said he was an RPF officer. He asked her to meet him at the station so he could jot down some details. Swati waited, thinking something would finally come of her complaint.
"But the only question the cop asked me was, 'Kya aap hamare customer service se khush ho?' (Are you happy with our customer service?) That's when I walked away," she said.
Even after walking away, Swati received several calls on her mobile phone from the same official, who insisted he needed to take down her personal details again.
'Never again'
In a city that has witnessed multiple attacks on trains and at railway stations, this apathy speaks volumes about the state of security. "This is exactly why people don't complain to the authorities in the first place. I was surprised that all the way from Bandra - where I made the first call to the helpline - to Churchgate, no one came to help," said Swati, adding, "I felt so embarrassed that despite being an aware citizen, I was unable to get any help. Help should be at hand at every station, and easily accessible, but I could not find anyone. Next time this happens, I'm just going to get off the train."
The other side
mid-day reached out to Anup Shukla, senior divisional security commissioner for the Western Railway, he said, "I am not authorised to comment on any issue. Please speak to my DIG about it." When this reporter called the 182 helpline, a woman officer said that their helpline number had been working just fine on Wednesday. She further said that it was normal procedure to take down the details of any informant making a call to them.
