VIJAYAWADA: While all the important railway stations and airports have been put on high alert ahead of the Republic Day celebrations, the Vijayawada Railway Station, one of the biggest railway junctions in the country, is bereft of any security measures, except the CCTV cameras.Though funds are available to improve safety measures, there is no move to install essential security devices including baggage scanners and door metal detectors at the station, which is located close to the Divisional Railway Manager’s office. What makes the things worse is the limited manpower at the disposal of the Railway Protection Force (RPF) officials.
When TNIE visited the railway station on Tuesday, thousands of people were seen entering and exiting the station without having to go through any security checks. The station witnesses the highest footfall during the festive season like Sankranthi, Dasara and Diwali. Most of the passengers enter and exit the station through the entrance at Platform No 1.
However, Railway Protection Force (RPF) officials maintained that they would be making temporary arrangement for a couple of days before and after major events like Independence Day and Republic Day by deploying additional forces on the station premises. Several passengers expressed their apprehension about the lack of proper security measures and demanded that the authorities take permanent measures to prevent untoward incidents.
Speaking to TNIE, Senior Divisional Security Commissioner SR Gandhi said that in the absence of baggage scanners and door metal detectors, the RPF personnel would press into service sniffer dogs and hand-held metal detectors to carry out thorough checks in the station. A proposal has been already sent to the Railway Board for approval to set up Integrated Security System in the station, as it is located close to the State capital Amaravati, he said.
Once, the proposal is approved by the Railway Board, the station will be equipped with X-ray baggage scanner, parcel scanner, under frame scanning system, baggage scanners and bomb detection devices. “As of now, the station is equipped with 55 CCTV cameras to monitor security and passenger activities. Around 120 more CCTV cameras will be installed under the Nirbhaya fund by the Signal and Telecom Department. It may take two more months to complete the project,” Gandhi said.