Life in train: Why are anti-social elements targeting Vande Bharat Express?

Hyderabad: Stone pelting incidents have cast shadows on Vande Bharat Express in many states since its launch.

At least nine stone pelting incidents have taken place in South Coastal Railway (SCR) jurisdiction since January. These incidents have caused damage to public property and the rescheduling of the train.

Second incident in Kerala:

Two days ago, unidentified miscreants allegedly targeted the recently launched Kasaragod-Thiruvananthapuram Vande Bharat Express.

The incident came to light when railway officials noticed a scratch, due to the stone pelting, on one of its windowpanes when the train was passing through the Valapattanam area in the district in north Kerala.

The railway officials immediately alerted the police suspecting that the stone had been pelted on the train while it was passing through Valapattanam.

This is the second such incident to occur in Kerala after Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the state's first Vande Bharat Express train from Thiruvananthapuram on April 25.

Cases in AP & TS:

Stone pelting cases in Andhra and Telangana started even before the launch of Vandhe Bharat from Secunderabad-Visakhapatnam. On January 11, stones were pelted when the train is in Visakhapatnam for maintenance purposes. The railway officials had estimated damage of Rs 1 lakh for repair works.

Kazipet - Khammam, Kazipet-Bhongir, and Eluru-Rajahmundry are vulnerable areas for such incidents.

A week ago, South Central Railway arrested six people, including three juveniles, for pelting stones at a Vande Bharat train recently, which delayed the train by four hours in Khammam.

With the help of CCTV footage, police identified the exact spot from where the stones were pelted. It damaged the window panes of the coach. Three were produced before the Railway Court in Vijayawada, while the minors were produced before a Juvenile Court in Rajamahendravaram, which sent them to a juvenile home.

According to the Railway officials, So far, Railway Protection Force has registered several cases, and 39 offenders across India have been arrested and sent to jail. Some of the stone pelting incidents also involved children aged between 6 to 17 years.

Timeline:

Jan 11: Miscreants pelted stones on the Vande Bharat train before its launch in Secunderabad-Visakhapatnam on January 19.

Vande Bharat train was sent to Visakhapatnam railway station for maintenance. A trial run was conducted by the Railway officials. At around 6 pm, while the train was on its way to the coach care center for maintenance at Marripapem, some unknown persons pelted stones near the Kancharapalem area. The coach glass was broken.

Feb 4: Unknown miscreants pelted stones on the C12 coach in Khammam district. Culprits were identified through CCTV footage. As a result, the train started late by about 3 hours due to the replacement of one emergency window glass of the C12 coach.

Feb 11: Stones were pelted at a train between Mahabubabad and Khammam railway stations in Telangana. Two window panes of C4 and C8 coaches were damaged in the incident.

What do Railway officials say?

South Central Railway has appealed to the public not to indulge in anti-social activities including stone pelting on trains, It causes serious injuries to passengers and damages the railway property.

Stone pelting on trains is punishable under Railway Protection Force (RPF) Act, and stringent action will be taken against the perpetrators under Section 153 of the Railways Act, which is punishable with imprisonment of up to 5 years.