Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw vows strict action against train 'sabotage' bid, ropes in NIA to probe incidents

NEW DELHI: Union railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Tuesday said that the government has roped in National Investigation Agency and DGPs and home secretaries of various states to track frequent train sabotage bids across the country and prevent any untoward incident.
"There is dialogue going on with state governments, DGPs and home secretaries. The NIA is also involved.Strict action will be taken against anyone who tries to cause such an accident. This is our resolve," Vaishnaw said while interacting with media persons in Jaipur.
"The central government treats security threats with the utmost seriousness and strict action will be taken against anyone attempting to sabotage trains. This is our commitment," he added.
This development follows several incidents in which locomotive pilots have detected dangerous objects on railway tracks, intended to derail trains or endanger the lives of passengers.
Recently, the Mahabodhi Express (12397) was targeted in a stone-pelting incident during its approach to Mirzapur station, on Monday. Maintenance staff member CT Ravikesh Yadav reported that at approximately 7:21 PM, an unknown individual threw stones from the south side, hitting the guard's brake. Fortunately, no injuries were reported.
"When the Mahabodhi Express (train number 12397) was nearing Mirzapur, the coach attendant and guard reported to control that a stone had hit the brake van. The control promptly notified the RPF and addressed the situation. Fortunately, no casualties or injuries were reported," stated Shashikant Tripathi, CPRO of Northern Central Railway said.
Meanwhile , Indian Railways also established a Rail Rakshak Dal. As part of a pilot project, Indian Railways has launched this initiative in the North Western Railway (NWR) zone.
Rail Rakshak Dal is capable of reaching the accident site promptly and conducting rescue operations.
"It's a proud moment for us that our Railway minister has taken this initiative for quick response in rescue during any mishap. NWR has been given this responsibility in the pilot project. It's for the first time that RPF is being included in the rescue process," Jyoti Kumar Satija, IG RPF, North Western Railway said.
"Rail Rakashak Dal has been formed on the direction of the Minister. The able-bodied staff of the Railway are being deployed in it. We are also training and exposing them in areas like swimming. The equipment that will be used all are lightweight - and easy to carry. The objective of the Rail Rakshak Dal is to be used by the Railway when needed and also to be used by the district administration at times," North Western Railway general manager Amitabh said.
" This is an initiative from the Railway to let all the stakeholders use this free of cost in hours of need. Till now, we used to call NDRF but the Minister had begun this initiative as an experiment," he added.