CHENNAI: During his 18 years of service as a gangman, now re-designated as track maintainer (TM), 42-year-old D Ramanathan had always remembered to step away from the railway track when he felt the vibration on the rails. But, on one occasion nearly two years ago, while he was preoccupied looking for a possible breach in a section, he failed to notice an express train heading in his direction till it was just 500 metres away.
It was a narrow escape for him, but the danger involved is real, killing scores of track maintainers while on duty. Workers like him are relied upon more than ever, for upon them rests the safety of the network that ferries crores of passengers every day. It is his duty to inspect the track and repair abnormalities such as small cracks or a loose bolt, all of which carry the threat of possible derailment, if remain unattended.
So, when Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu announced during last year’s Railway Budget that all gangmen would be provided with ‘Rakshak’, a wireless device to alert them about approaching trains, it was much welcomed by the men in orange. The minister also promised steps to reduce the weight of the tools they carry while patrolling on foot.
But a year on, neither of the proposed measures has been implemented. They have not laid their hands on Rakshak, nor have their burden reduced.Every morning, track maintainers set out carrying equipment, including beaters, crowbars, hammer, rake ballast and shovel, together weighing more than 20 kg and cover six km on foot checking for faults in tracks.
“A good number of gangmen are over 45 years old. They are vulnerable to failing health as they have to carry the weight under the hot sun,” said Rajesh, another TM.
Another issue is the need for communicative device, which according to Ramanathan, has remained unaddressed for long. There was a plan to issue walkie-talkie sets, but that has not come true. “In case of an emergency, there is no means of communicating to the nearest station master, except through his personal phone. There were instances when train maintainers walked back all the way to inform authorities about track fault.” (*names changed)
