Apart from not allowing waitlisted passengers, it is also being ensured that general class passengers are only allowed inside if their train is within two hours of departure; else they are made to wait in the holding area
Passengers go through a security check at Bandra station
The outstation train terminus on Mumbai’s Western Railway (WR) division on Tuesday became access-controlled, having entry exits of only confirmed ticket passengers and expanding the already existing holding areas following a new directive on crowd-control to cater to the Holi 2025 rush. A crowd-control war room has also been set-up to monitor the movement of passengers.
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Apart from not allowing waitlisted passengers, it is also being ensured that general class passengers are only allowed inside if their train is within two hours of departure; else they are made to wait in the holding area.
When mid-day visited Bandra Terminus, ticket checkers were manning every official entry point of the station and allowing passengers on the platform only after they checked tickets and restricting those who did not have tickets into holding areas. WR Mumbai already has such specially created holding areas.
At a high-level meeting on Friday headed by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on crowd-control at stations, a number of key decisions were taken, including the creation of permanent waiting areas outside stations at 60 stations across the country that periodically face heavy crowds.
Mumbai’s WR division has also formed a war room and detailed guidelines on how to go about this, fixing responsibilities on departments with field staff from the commercial department, RPF, operations, electrical power, signalling and telecom, engineering and medical at the stations.
“There is additional staff to be deployed at critical points, such as ticket counters, entry/exit gates, platforms, waiting rooms, and foot over bridges (FOBs) in all the shifts with revised duty rosters, increased patrolling, and clear signage,” said an official.
Holding areas
Officials said directives have been given for creating additional holding areas to control incoming crowds if heavy rush is expected at the stations. This holding area is to have sitting arrangements, light, a fan, an announcement system, and drinking water facilities. Ticket windows must be near to the holding area; if space is not available, any temporary options like porta cabins or ATVMs must be explored.
WR already has holding areas at Bandra Terminus and other stations, created a few months back.
The medical department has been kept on alert with emergency response teams on standby with sufficient numbers of wheelchairs and stretchers.
Restricted entry
Train-specific passengers will be allowed inside the station with proper queuing and flow regulated by ticket-checking staff at every entry point. Only bona fide passengers with valid tickets will be allowed to enter the station. Ticket sales are also being monitored on an hourly basis. If ticket sales are higher than usual, booking clerks will raise an alarm to higher authorities.
Holi 2025 guidelines
. Only passengers with confirmed tickets will be allowed on platforms
. Fully waitlisted entry restricted
. General ticket passengers will be allowed two hours before departure of their train
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