Pandian Express coaches reduced for safety: Railways

In the counter-affidavit filed by Commercial Manager of Madurai Railway Division, he said that the Linke Hoffman Busch (LHB) coaches were technologically advanced compared to the conventional coaches, which were adopted for its safety features and better passenger friendly amenities. Being a prestigious train, the railway board has allotted them for Pandiyan Express. 

Moreover, the 24-meter-long LHB coaches are 1.7 m lengthier than the conventional ones and it is forcing them to reduce the number of coaches in the LHB-coach trains. “Because platforms in the stations are built only to accommodate the trains with a certain length they could not extend the train,” claimed the official. He further said the petitioner has asked for an exclusive differently-abled coach for the train but there is no availability of such model in LHB coaches, so the request could not be considered, he mentioned.

In his petition, R Rajaselvan of Vedasandur in Dindigul district, had claimed that earlier the Pandiyan Super Fast Express was operated with 24 coaches including three unreserved coaches and one coach for women. Recently, its ICF (Integral Coach Factory) coaches were replaced with German-technology LHB coaches, for which, the authorities have reduced total number of coaches to 22. 

“As many differently-abled people travel in the train, there is a need for an exclusive coach for them. Hence the Court must direct Railways to operate the train with extra coaches,” prayed the petitioner. 

Adjourning the case to November 7, the division bench directed the General Manager of Southern Railways to consult with the railway board to check for any other possibility for attaching two more coaches.