Crime on Railways: India
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Crime on trains, statistics, year-wise
2014> 2016: crime increases 34%
Mahendra Singh, Train travel riskier, crime jumps by 34%, December 11, 2017: The Times of India
From: Mahendra Singh, Train travel riskier, crime jumps by 34%, December 11, 2017: The Times of India
Travelling by trains is getting riskier by the day as crimes under Indian Penal Code (IPC) witnessed an increase of over 34% in two years, according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report for 2016.
Incidence of IPC crimes, which include murder, rape, rioting, kidnapping and robbery among others, registered by Government Railway Police (GRP) in 2016 was 42,388 in comparison with 39,239 in 2015 and 31,609 in 2014.
Among the states, UP tops the chart with the maximum number of 8,293 cases, followed by Maharashtra (7,358), Madhya Pradesh (5,082), Delhi (4,306) and Bihar (2,287).
The data reflects crimes reported between January 1 and December 31, 2016.
In 2015, Maharashtra (7,277 cases out of 39,239 cases) was on top followed by UP (7,168 cases), Madhya Pradesh (4,461cases), Delhi (3,356 cases) and Bihar (2,182 cases).
During 2016, among IPC crimes, maximum cases were registered under ‘theft’ accounting for 33,682 out of 42,388 cases. It is followed by robbery (1,069) and kidnapping and abduction (280).
Around 236 cases of murder, 125 of attempt to murder, 79 of rape, 53 of dacoity and 112 of rioting were reported by Government Railway Police (GRP)—a force drawn from state police which has responsibility to maintain law & order in railways and railway premises.
Around 19,564 cases across the country were reported under special & local laws (SLL) crimes, like violation of prohibition act or gambling act or electricity act, by GRP in 2016 in which Kerala tops the chart with 7,371cases (7,151cases under Kerala Police Act and 88 cases under COTPA Act), followed by Gujarat (7,371), UP (2,625) and Bihar (1,235).
In overall ranking (Total GRP crime — IPC+SLL cases), UP is on the top with 10,918 cases, followed by Maharashtra (7,684), Kerala (7,678), Gujarat (6,561) and MP (5,253).
Interestingly, maximum number of 3,815 cases (out of total 4,023) under prohibition act were reported by GRP in Gujarat, followed by Maharashtra (114) and Kerala (87).
Under excise act, maximum of 1,094 cases (out of total 1,991) were reported in Bihar, followed by 303 in Punjab, 222 in UP and 170 in Haryana.
2015: Crime on trains vs. outside
See graphic:
Safety in Indian Railways
2016: 11 lakh people stole from Railways
Arvind Chauhan, 11L people stole from Rlys in ’16, December 8, 2017: The Times of India
Maha Leads With 2.23L Arrests, Followed By UP, MP, TN & Guj
The Indian Railways, it seems, is a veritable cave of treasures for robbers of all hues. From copper wires to iron bolts, towels to wash basin, blankets to faucets, nothing was spared.
It was a busy year for the Railway Protection Force, which arrested over 11 lakh people across the country for stealing components from railway tracks and infrastructure in 2016. Maharashtra led in the number of arrests at 2.23 lakh, followed by UP with 1.22 lakh nabs.
RPF personnel caught these people stealing pandrol clips, fishplates, bolts, overhead wires, rails, bathroom fittings in train coaches, and even tubelights, fan, hand towels and blankets from AC coaches. Madhya Pradesh saw 98,594 arrests, while Tamil Nadu 81,408 and Gujarat 77,047, rounding up the top five states with this dubious distinction.
According to railway officials, thieves target premiumquality iron and copper used in railway tracks, pandrol clips, high-tension overhead wires, signal cables apart from accessories on train coaches and railway stations.
Gaurav Bansal, chief public relation officer of North Central Railway zone, which covers half of UP railway traffic, said, “In eastern UP, miscreants throw iron chains on 25,000-volt overhead wires to disrupt power supply on the tracks and steal 99.9 % pure copper overhead wires, while in the rest of the state, people, especially drug addicts, steal pandrol clips or saw off parts of the track to sell in the grey market. A one-metre slice of railway track of 60 kg with 90 tonnes’ endurance capacity can provide sufficient money to buy contraband.”
Railway officials said a metre-long rail track can fetch over Rs 1,000 in the scrap market. Bansal added, “Some thieves take mugs, mirrors, metal water taps from train coach lavatories, while some steal hand towels, blankets and bulbs from AC coaches. Recently, Tejas Express and Mahamana Express reported lavatory taps, hand shower heads and carpets missing after the trains completed their maiden journeys. ”
Due to this menace, railways have now introduced fibre brake blocks for train wheels, as thieves were taking metal brake blocks too.
Thieves target premium-quality iron and copper used in railway tracks, pandrol clips, high-tension overhead wires, signal cables apart from accessories on train coaches and railway stations
