Thane, Kurla most unsafe on Mumbai local suburban train network

Thane, Kurla most unsafe on Mumbai local suburban train network

Mumbai: Thane and Kurla were the most unsafe stretches on the Mumbai suburban railway network in 2014, going by GRP statistics.

Of the total 3,118 offences recorded across the network in 2014, 17% (537) were in Thane alone. Kurla came next with 506 cases.

Overall, serious crimes on the Mumbai suburban railways increased by 14% last year from 2,676 cases in 2013.

Cases of molestation on trains or at stations increased by 34% in 2014. GRP officials attributed the spike to amendments in laws and complainants being encouraged to come forward. While year-on-year detection rates fell, conviction rates in magistrate courts peaked at 72% in 2014. Almost 37% of the cases registered at Thane were solved.

Mobile phone thefts rose by 31% last year compared to 2013. Kurla recorded the highest number of cases (283) while Thane came a close second with 274 cases.

Cases of murder of women doubled in 2014 and instances of abduction of women increased by four, compared to 2013. “Curbing mobile thefts and crimes against women will be our biggest priorities this year. We are in talks with mobile phone manufacturers to develop and install a default app which locks the handset completely when stolen, thus rendering it useless for thieves,” said GRP commissioner Ravinder Singhal. The GRP plans to set up a separate police unit to track stolen phones.

Interestingly, the worth of valuables stolen in 2014 was Rs 70.27 lakh more than the previous year. “We started reaching out to commuters through social media to provide an alternate option for getting their grievances heard. Through our Facebook page, we received 11 complaints last year,” said Singhal. He added that burking would not be tolerated and action would be taken against those personnel who refuse to register complaints at chowkies.

There’s a bit of good news too: accidental deaths on the railways have fallen by 83 cases while instances of commuters getting hurt in mishaps have decreased by 19. “Our goal now is to establish identities of unknown commuters killed in mishaps. Last year, we identified 63 such commuters, but over 1,000 are still unidentified,” Singhal said.

Moreover, out of the 210 missing cases recorded on the railways this year, 104 pertained to females. The GRP managed to track down 149 of those who had gone missing. “Instances of kids going missing from home and landing up at railway stations is high. We have tied up with various NGOs to counsel these kids and convince them to return home to their families. There are four such NGOs helping us at CST, for instance,” said a senior official.

The Mumbai GRP shortly plans to get linked with a nation-wide four-digit helpline number ‘1512’. A Whatsapp group, which connects GRP officers from across the country for sharing information on cases, is also in the offing. After irate passengers vandalized Diva and Dombivli stations last month—upset over disruption of services—the GRP has sent a proposal asking for three additional chowkies. The chowkies have been demanded at Diva, Kalwa and Mumbra stations as there is currently no space at these stations for GRP personnel to sit.

With Republic Day around the corner and the railways being the most vulnerable, the GRP is on high alert. “We do not have any specific alert this time but we have been briefing our staff and increasing checks,” Singhal said.