Day after Maharashtra train tragedy, labourers found sitting on tracks in Ludhiana

These workers, who live in the labour quarters located near the railway tracks, usually come out of their rooms during evening hours and spend leisure time by sitting together on tracks and engaging in gossips

A day after 16 migrant workers were run over by a freight train in Aurangabad district of Maharashtra, a number of labourers were found sitting on the tracks and roaming around in Dhandari Kalan, Ludhiana, on Saturday.

Migrant workers taking a stroll around railway tracks in Dhandari Kalan, Ludhiana, on Saturday. (HT Photo)

These workers, who live in the labour quarters located near the railway tracks, usually come out of their rooms during evening hours and spend their leisure time sitting together on tracks.

SOCIAL DISTANCING GOES FOR A TOSS TOO

An industrialist, requesting anonymity, who was returning home after closing his unit on Saturday evening, said he found these workers sitting on the track. “Most of them had not covered their mouths with masks or any other cloth and had thrown all social distancing norms to wind,” he said. “These migrants not only pose a risk to the society by not adopting social distancing, they can also become a cause of rail accidents. Moreover, no police personnel was present on the spot,” the industrialist said.

Station house officer (SHO) of Government Railway Police (GRP), Ludhiana, sub-inspector Balvir Singh, said he had received an alert about the presence of migrants on tracks near Laddowal, not Dhandari, adding that a team was sent to check the situation, but no migrant was found on the tracks. “However, I have alerted all GRP posts to keep an eye for such activities in their respective areas and take action against those found trespassing the railway tracks or sitting on them,” the SHO said.

The railway policeman also appealed to the migrants not to put theirs or others’ lives at risk by sitting on tracks.