Ladies coaches of Mumbai locals to get uniformed GRP personnel in night

Mumbai: The Government Railway Police (GRP) will deploy personnel in uniforms in ladies compartments of suburban trains and on platforms – numbering more than 1,200 – between 9 pm and 6 am to ensure the safety of women commuters, a senior official has said.

The move comes in the wake of recent incidents of sexual harassment of woman commuters on suburban trains in Mumbai. Two incidents of sexual assault and harassment of women on moving trains in the city were reported in the past month. The Railway police solved both the cases by arresting the accused persons.

Taking cognisance of these incidents, the GRP has come up with a plan for the safety of women commuters during their train journey, especially in night and early morning hours, said the police official on Tuesday.

Personnel in uniforms will be posted in ladies compartments between 9 pm and 6 am, he said.

These personnel will be drawn from the GRP, Home Guards and the Maharashtra Security Force, said the official, adding Railway Protection Force (RPF) staffers will also work in coordination with the GRP.

The vast Mumbai suburban train network is spread across Central, Western, Harbour, Trans-Harbour and Belapur-Nerul-Kharkopar (Ulwe) lines. During the night time, the Railway operates 1,041 trains on these routes, he said.

Considering the safety of women passengers and to avoid any untoward incidents, the GRP has decided to deploy 640 personnel on trains and more than 600 on platforms, said the official.

If women passengers find that security personnel are not onboard ladies coaches, they can immediately call the Railway helpline on 1512, he said.

Since January 1 this year, the GRP has received more than 1.58 lakh calls on the helpline of which 13,921 were for seeking help or to provide information, he said, adding police receive 700 to 800 calls a day.

The GRP attended every single call and all issues were addressed, he said.

Acting on these calls, the police registered 58 serious offences and solved 56 of the cases, said the official.

"Safety of women commuters is our priority. With the new plan, the GRP will make sure that not a single ladies compartment remains unattended," Railway Police Commissioner Ravindra Shisve told PTI.

As per current requirement, the GRP has an adequate number of personnel and in the near future, their number will increase, he said.