Mumbai’s suburban train network, often described as the city’s lifeline, proved to be a death trap with at least eight people dying on an average every day between 2005 and 2014 after falling off trains or while crossing the tracks.
A total of 29278 people lost their lives in accidents, with 6989 dying after falling off trains that are usually chock-a-block through the day.
Another 22,289 people got killed while crossing the tracks, according to information made available to activist Anis Khan by the Government Railway Police, Mumbai, under the RTI law.
Of a whopping 25,722 commuters who fell off the trains, 6989 died and 18,733 survived.
In 2005, 494 commuters lost their lives after falling from running trains. The figure went up subsequently and reached 901 in 2013, up 82 per cent over 2005, he said.
However, 2014 saw a marginal decline with 797 people dying after falling off trains, he said.
Khan alleged the railway administration has “completely failed” to provide safe and comfortable journey to the people.
“The basic reason why people are dying like animals is that railway officers have entirely failed to comprehend the hardships of the commuters…and the basic reason behind this (inability to comprehend the problems) is that officers never travel in local trains,” he said.
Most of the passengers fall off while perched precariously on footboard of the coaches or after dashing against poles adjacent to the tracks.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a railway officer said quite a few of the victims are youngsters who get killed while performing stunts.