WR's train indicator replacement project yet to begin

More than a year after it brought a proposal of replacement of old and malfunctioning indicators at suburban railway stations, Western Railway (WR) is still awaiting for the finalisation of tender.
The proposal of replacing old indicators with the new ones was initiated in April last year after which a tender was floated on August 27, but it had to be discharged in December after private firms quoted very high quotation (amount) for the project, a senior WR official told PTI.
"The second tender was floated on January 27, 2016, but no offers were received. Subsequently, a third notice inviting tender was issued on February 22 and it opened on April 6, 2016," the official said.

The third tender also did not receive any takers for the project.
"Currently, all these tenders are under discussion of the tender committee of WR. The the work of replacement of indicators can only begin after finalisation of the tender," he said.
At present, there are 1,004 indicators on WR's Churchgate to Virar section.

The total cost of the project, including old Public Announcement system, is nearly Rs 8.82 crore. It is being funded by Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC) and construction wing of the WR.
Most of the existing indicators were installed between 2004 and 2009, but railway authorities have been receiving complaints of malfunctioning of the indicators, which causes immense inconvenience to passengers, specially during the peak hours.

To a query regarding completion time of the project, the official said after the finalisation of the tender, completion period for physical replacement of indicators will take around nine months.
Meanwhile, Divisional Railway Users Consultative Committee member Rajiv Singal said they have been following up the issue with WR officials for the last six months that indicators that are over 10 years need immediate replacement.
"But, no concrete action has been initiated so far, which is causing problem for commuters," he added.