It took an attempt at sexual assault on a woman passenger last Saturday (March 22, 2025) night for the South Central Railway (SCR) to have a re-look at the safety, security, punctuality and frequency of MMTS suburban train services in the capital region. The 23-year-old woman sustained severe injuries after jumping off the moving train in an attempt to escape.
Though top officials have announced safety measures such as CCTV cameras inside coaches, panic buttons, regular patrols by security personnel post the incident, these local trains have long neglected the commuters’ clamour for better services.
Both SCR and the State Government are the guilty partners in this joint venture, launched in August 2003 by then Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani in the presence of then Union Minister Bandaru Dattatreya (then Secunderabad MP) and then Chief Minister of united Andhra Pradesh N. Chandrababu Naidu.
It may be a miracle that no other major crime has been reported on these trains, given the scary stories recounted by several passengers about men travelling in ladies compartments with impunity and complaints of nuisance being ignored.
Commuters claim that rarely have they come across security personnel patrolling the local trains, “Snatching of chains, mobiles and purses have been happening on isolated sections when passengers are few. But, attacking a woman passenger has come as a shock. We shudder at the thought of what could have happened if the victim had not jumped off the train,” says Bharat, a commuter.
Commuters like Sudhir K. Raj and Nagaraj have been flagging the security loopholes, such as the absence of security escorts on the trains, especially on ladies coaches, and posting photos of miscreants causing nuisance during the travel between Yakutpura and Uppuguda as well as Umdanagar and Secunderabad stations. They say they tag the railway authorities on their social media posts.
They also allege that the Railway Protection Force (RPF) are not being proactive, and personnel are found stationed only on select platforms. “MMTS trains are almost empty after Bolarum towards Medchal during the late hours with hardly 15-20 passengers travelling. Each station is a few kilometres away, and there is hardly any ticket checking or security patrol,” says Ahmed, another commuter.
Stations like Gowdavalli present a desolate picture with very few dwellings around and could give creeps to anyone travelling at night, he points out. Police have also found that out of the 14 stations between Secunderabad and Medchal, only Malkajgiri, apart from Secunderabad, have CCTV coverage.
Timings go for a toss
The commuters also point out how MMTS trains are halted at any point or cancelled any time without any notice, apparently to make way for an express or freight train.
“MMTS trains’ unscheduled halts at Dayanandnagar, Cavalry Barracks and other stations or even on the outer sections can stretch up to 45 minutes. Imagine being on a nine-coach train alone on such sections? Is it any wonder many avoid travelling [on the trains] especially after dark?” asks Suresh, a commuter.
Srinivas Prasad, a commuter who travels to Lingampally, adds, “We have seen metre gauge suburban trains running packed on this section. There is less patronage for MMTS towards Medchal because train timings are erratic, and unscheduled halts all along the route from Lalaguda till Chandnagar during both morning and evening hours make it inconvenient for employees and students; I am aghast SCR is unable to find a solution.”
Is it any wonder, some commuters ask, that the passenger count has dropped to about 50,000 from almost two lakh a day earlier. The railway attributes reduction of services to 80 from over 120 before to “no patronage” and commuters shifting to “free bus” travel and Metro, but the passengers point a firm finger at “unreliable services”.
“SCR has killed MMTS by not running on time, cancelling services on a whim and making it unreliable. No wonder they run empty,” reads a pithy comment by Vrijlesh Rai on ‘X’.
Whose responsibility
As per norm, SCR handed over the sexual assault case to the Government Railway Police (GRP), which functions under the State Government with powers to investigate crimes and deal with law and order issues. And, despite two Union ministers from Telangana urging the railway to take “responsibility” for the survivor’s medical care, nothing has happened, save for a token visit by a few officials to the hospital where she is undergoing treatment. The culprit is yet to be arrested when reports last came in.
Some commuters say that apart from a shortage of security personnel, there are coordination issues between GRP and RPF, leaving a huge gap in ensuring visible patrolling on trains. “RPF-GRP personnel are present at prominent stations such as Malkajgiri, but not on outskirts. Their focus is express trains, and local trains are often given a miss,” alleges Rajesh, another commuter.
Rakesh, a commuter, suggests that SCR follow the method of the Mumbai suburban trains, where a home guard travels on ladies coaches at night. Another advice is to cut down the number of coaches from 9/12 to six for better coordination and security.
A top railway official, seeking anonymity, says that certain “blackspots” on MMTS sections have been identified and admitted shortage of security personnel from both RPF and GRP sides. “We are trying to bridge the gap by taking in 500 home guards,” he says.
Published – March 29, 2025 08:32 am IST
