Mumbai: Debris at Kurla station hinder commuters

Debris from deep-cleaning of tracks are placed on platforms 5 and 6 at Kurla railway station

The presence of debris-filled sacks on the island platform of fast trains at Kurla station has inconvenienced the commuters who now have to jostle for space. Kurla junction is one of the busiest stations on the Central Railway with the corridor having the highest section load. Railway officials said that the debris was being cleared as much as possible every night and will be taken away completely.

"The fast train platform at Kurla is always crowded and there is a problem to stand and with these debris filled sacks all over the platform along with stalls and all other amenities, very little space is left," Suyash Deshpande, a resident of Nehru Nagar Kurla East said.

"The railways should remove the sacks immediately as they complete work and keep them elsewhere. The platform has trains coming on either side and is narrow and such storing of debris not only occupies space, but also leads to dust and pollution in the air," another commuter Nandita Motwani said. When mid-day visited the site on Tuesday morning, it found several such sacks filled with ballast and debris piled over one another, scattered all over the platform.

"Many of them are near the edge of the platform and when a train comes and it gets crowded, there is very little space to negotiate and walk around," another commuter Ramya Sethi said. "What is the point of having cleanliness drives when such an act is committed? It not only spoils the platform surface, but makes it all dusty. I saw many standing with their noses covered," commuter Akshaya Veddiwar said.

Central Railway officials said that the debris and sacks will be cleared immediately and it is removed every night. "Track deep screening work is being undertaken at this place. It's like complete renewal of track which is essential for safety reasons. Old material released from the track is stacked on platforms, but it is being removed during the night hours," a CR spokesperson said.

Deep screening of track is a process that ensures a clean ballast cushion is available below the sleepers. This is necessary for the proper drainage and elasticity of the track, resulting in improved running quality of track. . It also helps to avoid train detentions due to engineering or S&T gear failures. The muck generated along with poor ballast is filled in sacks and temporarily placed on the platforms and cleared progressively every night in a special garbage train called ‘Swachhta Rath', an old repurposed local train, an official said.

5 & 6
Platforms on which the debris have been placed