Premium Trains To Get Special Coaches For Women And Differently-Abled

Very soon, top trains such as Rajdhani, Duronto and Shatabdi will have an extra reserved coach only for women and specially-abled people.

Railway authorities have confirmed that they are planning to install an upgraded power car for all of these trains. The coaches of these trains shall be manufactured by Link Hofmann Bosch also known as LHB. Currently, all of these trains have two coaches manufactured by LHB which supply power to the whole train and they even power their air conditioners. Due the upgraded version of the power car only one coach will be needed to supply the power. So, the trains can now have an extra coach attached which can be made special for women and differently-abled  passengers.

Earlier these premium trains had two power cars one for power supply and the other was reserved in case of an  emergency. However, with the new power car the reserved car will not be needed. The upgraded power source back- up will be fitted beneath the footboard of the train, called the underslug.

An official cited in the report informed that Integral Coach Factory (ICF) which manufactures rakes for railways has made two prototypes of rakes with power car with all back-up equipment in the underslung.

If this new non AC coach is attached to a fully air conditioned train, then the fare for the journey will be much lesser.

Earlier this year, the railway minister – Piyush Goyal had said – “that the government will replace all old coaches in trains with modern and safe LHB coaches.”

Atul Desai, the president of the Fellowship of The Physically Handicapped appreciated this new initiative, he said, “It will be worth it only if all facilities are conducive to the handicapped and the wheelchair-bound.”

A disability activist, Nilesh Singit had also said, “There’s nothing new in this unless they make it disabled-friendly vis-à-vis the toilet and seating arrangement. Also, they should offer some concession on fare. If not, I may as well travel by plane.”

Dedicating a special coach for women and the physically handicapped is a great idea. As the safety for women in trains will increase, and more women are likely to travel long distances in these train. This change will take place shortly, and hopefully it will encourage more women to travel alone.

Read also: “Groped And Manhandled”, Virali Modi Petitions For Disabled-Friendly Trains

Pic credit: Deccan Herald

Kavya Shah is an intern at SheThePeople.Tv