Keywords: Seeks Railway Board’s Response
A division bench of the Bombay High Court, comprising Acting Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Arif Doctor, has requested a response from the Railway Board regarding the suggestions put forth by the Central Railway and Western Railway. The suggestions involve converting a luggage compartment in Mumbai Local trains into a designated space for senior citizens.
The court was informed about these proposals during the hearing of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by K P Purushothaman Nair, a lawyer and retired senior private secretary of a judge. The PIL sought the allocation of a special coach for senior citizens, akin to the one provided for disabled persons.
The Central and Western Railways conducted a survey, which revealed that approximately 80% of the people using the 4-5 luggage compartments in 12 and 15 train coaches were unauthorized travelers.
In light of this information, the high court has called upon the Railway Board to provide its response to the suggestions made by the railways. The court took note of the ongoing consideration of the feasibility of these proposals and directed that the Railway Board’s response be submitted for the record. The matter has been scheduled for further discussion on August 23.
The PIL highlights the daily struggles faced by approximately 50,000 senior citizens who commute on local trains in Mumbai. It emphasizes that even for younger individuals, entering trains during peak hours becomes challenging due to overcrowding.
The petitioner, Nair, had previously approached the Chief Justice of Bombay High Court in 2019, requesting a separate compartment for senior citizens. However, the matter was forwarded to the Railways Department by the public grievance cell of the High Court. In January 2020, the Railways Department responded to Nair, stating that it was not justified to earmark a separate bogie exclusively for senior citizens. Dissatisfied with this reply, Nair decided to file the current petition before the Bombay High Court.
Nair’s petition stresses that he has been regularly commuting from Bandra to Churchgate for 35 years and prefers to travel in the compartment where seats are reserved for senior citizens. However, senior citizens accompanying him have frequently raised grievances about the difficulties they face in boarding and alighting from the crowded second-class compartment due to heavy rush.
The court’s upcoming hearing on the matter will provide an opportunity to further assess the suggestions and address the concerns raised by the petitioner on behalf of senior citizens seeking more accessible and comfortable travel options on Mumbai Local trains.[1]
Written by- Jaydeep Ramani, College name – Veer Narmad South Gujarat University, Semester- 7 an intern under Legal Vidhiya
[1] https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/mumbai/hc-seeks-railways-response-proposal-convert-1-compartment-mumbai-local-trains-senior-citizens-8848606/
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