So, what would it take to get Kurla station cleaned up?

Escalator parts lying on a platform

Kurla suburban station remains a mess despite a special visit by the Central Railway general manager about a fortnight ago. The station sees a footfall of over five lakh commuters every day, but navigating it remains a struggle. Despite the visit of such a high-ranking official, not even the basics are in place, with debris lying around and overall squalor.

A visit by mid-day on Tuesday revealed that sacks of debris were dumped on several platforms and commuters continued to lack easy access to the east and west. It was difficult to walk on platforms 3-4 due to the presence of debris.

Debris lies all along the east side with the railway area not demarcated and secured while a staircase has been shut, creating chaos. Debris, unauthorised vehicles and hawkers have taken over the circulating area outside the ticket office, escalator and subway entry/exit.

Let us see a concerted drive to clean up all stations, irrespective of visits by officials. These are extremely people-dense spaces. Debris and obstructions can be dangerous in such places, where people are all in a tearing hurry and trying to squeeze into places, especially during peak hours. Cutting off access to staircases, for whatever reason overburdens existing infra, and it also creates a sense of frenzy and panic amongst commuters.

We have seen a lot of effort when it comes to train upgradation. Let us now see a focussed, concerted effort at all stations, entrances and exits too, including surrounding areas that see a tremendous influx daily. When one upgrades a transport arm, there must be a parallel effort at all supporting and necessary amenities, too. Like we have trains and stations. Similarly, buses and bus stops. So that the entire exercise becomes much smoother and works well in tandem. Let us have action stations now.