Railways praised for timely-service

By S. Vydhianathan and N. Ravikumar

CHENNAI, JUNE 23. Timely help from local people and quick arrangements made by the railways came in for a word of praise from the few remaining passengers who resumed their journey and arrived here on Saturday afternoon by the ill-fated Mangalore- Chennai Mail.

Giving a vivid account of the incidents that took place after the accident, a bank employee, who was on his way to Chennai from Kozhikode to attend a departmental promotion interview, said, ``there was nothing unusual about the train and it was travelling at the right speed. But, soon after the AC coach, in which I was travelling, followed by three others, crossed the bridge, we heard lots of sound. There was smoke all around, but it was because of the crushing of the cement concrete structure.''

Mr. A. P. Shankar, another passenger and a relative of former DGP, Mr. Lakshmi Narayanan, who is to travel to New Jersey on Sunday, said the railways made available telephones soon after the accident and did not prevent people from even making international calls.

One issue on which all the passengers concurred was the cooperation extended by the people in the neighbourhood of the accident spot. ``Their assistance, in the form of food, medicines and water, was spontaneous, especially from the youth. They did not even charge people for taking them to the nearby motorable road, about 10 km away'', acknowledged Mr. E. V. Ramakrishnan, a Calcutta Ordnance factory staff, who travelled with two of his family members in the train.

Unfortunately, there was some confusion about the departure time of the special train from near the accident site. Many passengers made their own arrangements in the meanwhile.

But, for many like Ms. Leena, who travelled by the train with her husband and two children, it was ``time to thank God'' on arrival here. While, for the two tiny-tots, Baby Anagha Bhat and Ashwini Bhat, who were on the train along with their mother and grandfather, it was as if nothing had happened. Unaware of the tension, both the children were happy sipping the fruit drink provided by the railway authorities.

At Chennai, luggage of passengers was transported by the railways free. The station authorities made special arrangements including provision for first-aid and medical attention at the platform. They also provided mineral water to all passengers.

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Section  : Southern States
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