TIRUCHY: Tiruchy railway junction is now equipped with a cloth bag vending machine, courtesy the Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) which as part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) installed it at the main entrance near Platform 1 at a cost of about Rs 5 lakh on Wednesday.
This has made Tiruchy the first station under the Southern Railway to provide such a facility for passengers. The vending machine dispenses a cloth bag for Rs 20, which can be paid in Rs 10 notes or in coins of denominations of Rs 5 and Rs 10. There is also a QR code payment system.
P Ravindran, a senior citizen in Thillai Nagar, said, "Cloth bag vending machines are ideal mostly in transport hubs like railway stations which often witness round-the-clock commuter movement. For instance, if a passenger wants a small bag to store some essential material, it may not be possible for him to go around shops to buy one. Many passengers are likely to face such a situation and the round-the-clock vending machine will hence be of great help for them.” A Manimekalai, a railway passenger, said,
“The railway should consider getting additional funds or support to bring down the cost of the bags. It should also consider installing such machines in more stations.” Senior railway officials said that they would consider it. With the only other places in Tiruchy where cloth bag vending machines are installed being the collectorate and Sri Ranganathaswamy temple in Srirangam, demands rise for the facility to be made available in commercial areas of the city.
Ravindran, however, urged for measures to ensure the machine’s safety at such public spots. When enquired, corporation officials pointed out that a project is already underway to make such bags from old clothes disposed of by residents in the ‘Reduce, Reuse, Recycle' (RRR) boxes installed at micro-composting centres.