CHENNAI: From now, lady passengers on a train can dial the all India helpline number 1322 from any service provider to report any theft or harassment on the train, following which action would be taken immediately, a Southern Railways press release said.
Helpline number: 1322 |
Most Common complaints:
|
According to a senior official of Southern Railways, a separate team has been constituted to attend to passengers’ grievances on trains. "Already there are helplines at the divisional level, but this would be a common number for India. Railway Protection Force (RPF) or Government Railway Police (GRP) officials would be intimated immediately. The message would be relayed to three different officials including the train in-charge and station in-charge," the official said.
Another RPF official of the Chennai division recalled a recent incident when a Rameshwaram bound lady, from Andhra Pradesh, made a distress call as her co-passenger was consuming liquor on the train. "The call was then routed through South-Central Railway and came to Southern Railway a week later. But with this direct helpline, action will be taken at the very next station," he said.
Officials said most common complaints received were of theft, nuisance caused due to smoking or alcohol consumption on train and harassment of women passengers travelling alone.