About 25 passengers were trapped inside a railway coach in an accident. It was then that the railway ART TEAM responded immediately and at the same time Railway Emergency Control Room alerted the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team for support to rescue the passengers.
The NDRF team reached the station and rescued them with their specialised equipment.
This was a mock exercise aimed at checking co-ordination and preparedness of various emergency and disaster response services during an emergency situation. It was part of the mock drill conducted jointly by the South Central Railway and the NDRF personnel at Bolarum railway station on Friday.
The response team comprising of 25 personnel from the Regional Response Centre (RRC), Hyderabad, 10th Battalion NDRF - under the command of deputy commandant Damodar Singh, along with Railway ART and others, conducted the exercise between 10.15 and 11.45 a.m.
The mock drill was also to test the use of various equipment procured for use during disasters and undertake hands-on experience with tools like cold cutting equipment such as saber saw, abrasive cutter to cut the window rods and the coach body, which facilitates easy lifting of injured passengers and evacuate them from the affected coaches. A 140 tonne crane and accident relief train were also put to use during the entire exercise.
Top railway officials were present.
Seven cases
Meanwhile, seven cases were booked against the violators carrying fire crackers and inflammable articles. In addition, 219 cases were booked against people smoking on railway premises. In the last one month, the SCR conducted 1,540 checks at different railway stations, 1,028 checks in various trains, 186 checks at other railway premises like yards, washing lines etc., during a special drive from October 16 to November 16, 2023.
GM inspects Guntakal – Dhone section
Meanwhile, SCR General Manager Arun Kumar Jain undertook inspection of Guntakal – Dhone section of Guntakal Division accompanied by Divisional Railway Manager, Guntakal Division, Manish Agarwal and others.
He carried out a rear window inspection in Guntakal - Panyam section, to examine the safety aspects of track and signalling systems.
He inspected the Mallappa gate cabin in the section, reviewed the train records and met cement company representatives to discuss freight loading aspects.
The Pendekallu, Panyam and Dhone railway stations were inspected. The proposed siding site at Rangapuram was also checked.