The Haridwar railway station may have achieved A grade status but as far as cleaning of the rail coaches is concerned it still has to go a long way. Following the recent inspection by the divisional rail manager, Moradabad, the authorities are gearing up to facilitate proper cleaning of the railway coaches.
During his recent inspection visit, DRM Pramod Kumar had expressed dissatisfaction over the state of the washing line. While various switch boards were found to be defunct, the necessary arrangement of light was also found missing. He asked the officials to send the procurement proposal for the works.
The DRM also asked the railway authorities to purchase helmets with mounted light for convenience in working.
The washing line employees were found working without uniform and identification cards with the DRM telling them to comply with the work regulations. Notably, the railway department has made contract for the mechanised cleaning to a Delhi based agency- Vishakha Enterprises. Unhappy with the state of cleaning, the DRM instructed the officials concerned to ensure proper functioning.
Speaking to The Pioneer, the in charge of washing line electrical department, Waqil Ahmed said, “We have complete infrastructure available for cleaning and the mechanised cleaning contract given to the agency is renewed every year. Proper cleaning of train bogies is done every day though there are some aspects requiring improvement which will be undertaken as directed by the DRM.”
During the inspection the DRM also pulled up officials when he saw that the basic step -keeping window shutters down during the washing- was not being observed by the workers. According to railway officials, he workers are trained in the procedural cleaning of bogies. They are also directed to be cautious on various other aspects like switching off of electric panels after work and keeping bogey window shuttered down during washing, claim the officials.