Promoting safety at railway stations
The Hindu
The bomb blast in an express train at the Dr. MGR Chennai Central Station in May 2014 and the daylight murder of a woman commuter at Nungambakkam in June 2016 came as a rude wake-up call for Southern
The bomb blast in an express train at the Dr. MGR Chennai Central Station in May 2014 and the daylight murder of a woman commuter at Nungambakkam in June 2016 came as a rude wake-up call for Southern Railway and made it focus on improving the safety and security of commuters.
The Indian Railways made an allocation exclusively for improving the safety and security under the Nirbhaya Fund.
In the first phase, Southern Railway identified the need to commission an integrated security system (ISS), comprising installation of closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras, baggage scanners, and door frame metal detectors at important stations attracting huge crowds. With the allocation from the Nirbhaya Fund, the ISS was commissioned at 15 important stations spread across six divisions, with Chennai Division gaining prominence.
Around 440 MBBS graduates of 2021 are not required to undergo one year of compulsory rural service as per the bond signed by them while joining the medical course through government-quota seats in 2015 as the High Court of Karnataka has said the law, enacted in 2012 for mandatory rural service, remained unenforced for 10 years as it was published in the official gazette only in July 2022.