CHENNAI: Southern Railway on Monday restored audio announcements in the MGR Chennai Central station, which was suspended on February 26. The station was designated a “silent railway station” on a trial basis.
Officials reasoned that the decision was taken because announcements about train information and advertisements created excessive noise, leading to multiple complaints from passengers. However, the decision to go silent attracted sharp criticism and several disability advocacy groups petitioned the Railways seeking restoration of the announcements. On Monday, a group of persons with disabilities staged a protest in front of Central station demanding the same.
As a result, the audio and visual systems have since been streamlined, and the silent station trial has been withdrawn, said a press release from Railways. “The decision to mute audio was taken only on a trial basis. Following requests from the passengers we have reinstated the announcements,” said an official from the railway division.
The frontline railway staff deployed at the station received a large number of queries from passengers who travelled to Patna and other parts of the country for the past few days, said sources. After restoration, the announcement system was streamlined in a low voice and the arrival and departure of the trains are not announced repeatedly, unlike earlier, sources added.