Railways: 312 Gangmen Lost Lives On Duty In Last 4 Years

Over 300 gangmen, the level-1 employees of Indian Railways, have lost their lives on duty after being hit by trains in the last four years.

According to the data submitted by the Railways in the Rajya Sabha, a total of 312 track maintenance staff have died in the last four years on duty in different parts of the country.

The track maintenance staff, also known as gangmen, were killed while performing bonafide official duties.

Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has said in a written reply last week that ex-gratia compensations were paid to the families of Railway track maintenance staff who lost their lives.

The highest number of gangmen had died on duty from different railway sections in Uttar Pradesh from 2018 to 5 December in 2022, followed by 48 track maintenance personnel in Maharashtra during duty in the same period.

The lowest number of gang men casualties occurred in Gujarat with 12 deaths on the track. In West Bengal 35 gangmen died on the tracks, while in Andhra Pradesh 33 were killed after being run over by trains during this period.

Chhattisgarh reported 14 deaths on the tracks, Haryana witnessed 13 gang men killed while on duty.

Railways conduct regular counselling of track maintenance staff for personal safety first, while working near the tracks. Railways have also provided safety gears to the gangmen.

They are now being equipped with protective equipment, safety helmets, and retro-reflective high visibility jackets for duty. Work site remote control hooters and whistles are also being provided to track maintenance staff as a safety measure.

The Railways has also sanctioned Rs 91.21 crore for the installation of the very high frequency-based 'Approaching Train Warning System', which is also called 'Rakshak', on the Golden Quadrilateral-Golden Diagonal routes of the rail network.