Acting on passenger’s tweet, rail ministry provides for wheelchair

The Railway ministry for the second time this week, responded to a passenger’s query on Twitter and provided assistance.

Pankaj Jain was travelling on the Yesvantpur-Bikaner train with his ailing father on Sunday when he requested for a wheel chair via a tweet to the rail ministry. To his surprise, the ministry responded to his tweet and extended him all necessary help.

The Railway ministry for the second time this week, responded to a passenger’s query on Twitter and provided assistance.(AFP File Photo)

“I called my friend, who is a doctor in Bengaluru, who suggested that I ask for help via twitter. I tweeted to the rail ministry on November 28 at around 6-7pm, asking for the train to be stopped for 10 minutes, for a wheelchair and for assistance in getting my father down at Merta Road,” Jain, a businessman and Janata Dal (Secular) youth wing vice-president told HT.

Jain had taken his father to Butati Dham for treatment, which is around 35km from Merta Road. The train reaches Merta Road at 3.15am and halts only for 5 minutes, so he was worried as how he and his father would deboard the train.

“The station master, coolies and railway staff with a wheelchair were waiting at the platform. They helped me and my dad in getting off and escorted me to the gate,” an impressed Jain said.

Jain and his family have extended their gratitude to the station superintendent and other staff of North Western Railway.

“I am really surprised by the excellent support extended to me and my family and all of us extend our sincere thanks to North Western Railway chief public relation officer Tarun Jain, Merta Road station superintendent Amar Singh, the coolies and the station staff,” Jain told Hindustan Times.

NWR chief public relation officer Tarun Jain said “I got the tweet from rail ministry and immediately we made sure that railway staff along with wheel chair were available for the person in need at the railway station. Jain and family were taken care at the Merta Road station.”

The conversation on Twitter. (Twitter)

Earlier this week, a woman passenger, who was travelling alone on an outstation train in Maharashtra, was immediately attended to by authorities after she sought help through a tweet directed to the Twitter handle of railway minister Suresh Prabhu.

The commuter, identified as Namrata Mahajan, was being harassed by a male passenger at Shegaon. After her plea for help, she was attended to by RPF jawans at the Bhusaval railway station.