19 December,2018 10:55 AM IST | | Suraj Ojha
Representational picture
The Indian Railway Board is planning to provide Segways, that is a two-wheeled, self-balancing, battery-powered electric vehicle to the Railway Protection Force (RPF) officials for patrolling at long platforms.
Segways are used by Marine Drive Police in Mumbai to do patrolling at the promenade. Even at Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL), food delivery system was introduced by using Segways
According to the sources, the Railway board is looking for the perfect and spacious platform. In Mumbai, the RPF plays a key role when it comes to detecting crime and controlling the crowd at the railway stations. However, the project is still in its nascent stage. According to highly placed sources, an experiment will be conducted on platform number 18 at CSMT
Not easy to implement
To ensure safety and security of passengers travelling on the Mumbai suburban network, the Government Railway Police (GRP) had written to the Railway department to evict all eateries on railway platforms to provide more walking space. An officer said, "A railway platform is too crowded for Segways to operate as where trains arrive and depart in every 3 to 4 minutes with continuous crowd. While talking to mid-day, Chief Security Commissioner of Central railway A.K Shriwastava confirmed the development and said it is on very initial level.
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Very risky
A Segway is a self-balancing vehicle for which the officials need sufficient training because if they lose their balance, then it may cause an accident or the official might fall on the railway track. In June 2018, one of the two battery-operated cars at Dadar station toppled and fell on the tracks on platform number 7. The incident occurred few minutes after Janshatabdi Express had departed from the platform.
Sources from Western Railway RPF revealed that they have planned to start at Mumbai Central, Bandra, Borivli, Surat, and Ahmedabad railway station.
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