Train services hit due to Contractor: CR

The Central Railway (CR) has blamed a private contractor for the power failure that disrupted train services on Kalyan and Karjat section on March 24.

The Central Railway (CR) has blamed a private contractor for the power failure that disrupted train services on Kalyan and Karjat section on March 24. Sources in the CR said that the contractor had left behind a small cable close to the overhead equipment (OHE) cable that led to sudden power outage, which crippled electricity supply to trains.

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Local and long-distance train services between Kalyan and Karjat section were severely affected due to this power failure.

"Private contractor’s negligence led to power tripping. We have asked them to pay a penalty of few lakhs (amount is being determined) for this fault,” said a senior CR official.

This incident occurred near Neral station. Thousands of commuters were stranded inside due to this power outage. Trains services resumed services only after 11.30 pm. “The power tripped but the problem was rectified at 10.25 pm; and train services resumed soon after,” said Vidyadhar Malegaonkar, chief PRO, Central Railway.