Bombay HC slams railways as Mumbai rain cripples local train services

If the Railways were not able to manage this, it should consider privatisation, Bombay HC said.

Tracks submerge under water every monsoon, paralysing the local train services in Mumbai, but the Railways has not taken any concrete steps to prevent it, the Bombay High Court said on Tuesday.

The remarks came on a day when torrential rains hit the suburban train services.

A division bench of Justices N H Patil and G S Kulkarni was hearing a public interest litigation seeking a direction to the Railways to make stations and platforms disabled-friendly.

While noting that the authorities had not taken any action in this regard, the court also raised the issue of water-logging on tracks.
 

"Every year during monsoons tracks get submerged in water in low-lying areas. Why can not the Railways identify such spots and elevate the tracks?" Justice Kulkarni asked.

If the Railways were not able to manage this, it should consider privatisation, the court said.

The bench adjourned the hearing for two weeks, asking the Railways' lawyer to tell the court next time what measures were being taken to prevent water-logging on tracks.