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Trains forced to halt as drunk assst station master passes out
KANPUR: Many trains, some of them premium passenger trains, came to a grinding halt a little before the Kanchausi railway station in Auraiya between 12
KANPUR: Many trains, some of them premium passenger trains, came to a grinding halt a little before the Kanchausi railway station in Auraiya between 12.10 am and 1.30 am, as they did not get the signal from the assistant station master.
Reason: Assistant station master Aniruddh Kumar drank liquor heavily on duty and passed out in his chamber, leaving the rail movement to fate.
“It has come to light that the assistant station master was drunk, since he was not in condition to perform his duties. He was suspended on the spot and another station master was arranged to allow the train movement,” said chief spokesman, North Central Railways, Shivam Mishra.
On Friday morning, Kumar underwent medical examination for confirmation of working in an inebriated state at the railway hospital in Tundla, said station superintendent, Dibiyapur Vishambhar Dayal Pandey.
Kanchausi is a home signal point and the trains failing to get the clearance halted at the outer one by one between 12.10 and 1.30 am, said a person familiar with the case. The trains included Magadh Express, Farakka Express, Vaishali Express, Sangam Express and several goods trains.
The Phaphoond and Jhinjhank railway stations informed the rail traffic control-room about the trains stuck near Kanchausi and not moving ahead. The information caused a flutter in the rail traffic control, which swung into action and informed station superintendent Pandey, who tried to get in touch with Kumar but failed.
He rushed to Kanchausi railway station and found him sleeping. Pandey poured two buckets of water on him to wake him up. Nothing worked, said another person. Pandey said while he was trying to get Kumar on his feet, he smelled liquor. “I informed about this to the rail traffic control and took charge, allowing the trains to proceed further,” he said.
The train started moving at around 2 am.
In the morning, station superintendent Phaphoond Arjun Singh reached Kanchausi to oversee the train movement. On his information, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) took Aniruddh Kumar to Tundla by Bhagalpur-New Delhi Express for medical examination. According to officials, apart from suspending him, NCR has served a charge-sheet and ordered elaborate inquiry into the case.
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