Local train late? You can blame it on chain pulling

Chain pulling on express trains mostly occurs at important stations like Kalyan, LTT and Thane

Waiting for a delayed local train at a Central Railway station? Well, the train might be late because someone on board a long distance train would have pulled a chain to recover a fallen mobile phone or to aid someone who got down to fetch water and the train departed in the meantime.

Yes, the Central Railway has stated that the punctuality of local trains are several times marred by alarm chain pulling or ACP on mail trains. To back the claim with statistics, the CR said that 2,300 local trains of Mumbai division were delayed up to 15 minutes this April due to ACP on long distance trains in the suburban section.

To curb this menace and also reduce crowding on stations, the CR has resorted to temporary move of hiking rates of platform tickets from Rs 10 to Rs 50 at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Dadar, Lokmanya Tilak Terminus, Thane,

Kalyan and Panvel stations for 15 days between May 9 and May 23.

Asserting that chains should only be pulled during cases of emergency, a CR official averred, “The chains are being misused for helping delayed co-passengers board the train, to collect mobile phones that fall out of train owing to carelessness, to aid passengers who get down to purchase something and are unable to board back, and for passengers who miss the destination or those who forget luggage," averred a CR official.

In the Mumbai Division, chain pulling occurs mainly at Kalyan, LTT and Thane stations as these are important Main line stations where most trains halt. “If chain pulling occurs after the starting of trains at crossing points at these stations, then the train blocks other lines also, which badly hits the punctuality of local trains, especially in morning and evening peak hours," explained the official.

Speaking about the ACP issue, CR chief PRO Shivaji Sutar said, “From April 1 to April 30, a total of 332 ACP cases were reported in the Mumbai division. Of these, 53 cases have been registered as justified due to valid reasons, whereas 279 cases were found unreasonable.” A total of 188 offenders have been prosecuted under section 141 of the Indian Railway Act for ACP without sufficient or valid reason and Rs 94,000 have been realized as penalty from them, he apprised. However, their impromptu act affected the punctuality of 2,300 locals and 700 long distance trains.

"We appeal to the passengers not to resort to ACP for frivolous reasons thereby inconveniencing the rest of travellers. The misuse of the alarm chain without sufficient and reasonable cause is a crime under Section 141 of Railways Act, 1989, punishable by a three-month jail sentence or a fine of up to Rs 1,000, or both," underscored a CR official.