Lack of CCTV cams poses risk to commuters at Royapuram station

Declared as a heritage building and the oldest railway station in south India, Royapuram railway station faces serious lack of amenities, causing hardship to hundreds of passengers who use the station to commute to and from the city.

While the entire country has been on cleanliness drive for years now, the Royapuram station stands apart by not having dustbins within the station premises, forcing the public to litter everywhere. Passengers also pointed out that there is no digital clock in the station until just a few days ago. Even after the clock was fixed, commuters complained that it is not working.

The public announcement system, which is also mandatory for any railway station, is by and large inoperative. “Sometimes we miss the train when there is no announcement during the arrival. If there is an announcement, we would be alerted about the train’s arrival and manage to catch it. Because of this issue, we are unable to board trains on time. There is a facility to make announcements. Yet, the officials fail to do,” said Marimuthu, who works in a textile shop on GA Road.

He pointed out that platform 1 of the Royapuram railway station does not have a shelter. “If the train is arriving on platform one, we are forced to stand in the sun for a long time. During the rainy season, the situation becomes even worse,” said Marimuthu. Though there are Railway Police Force (RPF) personnel posted at the station, they are grossly inadequate. As a result, there is no public safety, especially for women during the night. Commuters also said that the station is not under CCTV surveillance.

“We find RPF personnel coming for rounds only once in a day. And they hardly stay for not more than 5 minutes. At night, it is scary to wait here. My other option to commute would be to take two or three buses atnight,” said Suganthi J, a resident of Annanur who commutes to Royapuram frequently.

Adding to the woes, the station is not differently-abled friendly as it does not have any ramps. The station also hasonly one functioning toilet for men and women.

Another major problem is the lack of parking space for two-wheelers. “The vehicles are often parked in a haphazard manner and not easily accessible. Also, there is no easyconnectivity as the nearest bus stop is a kilometre away,” said another commuter.

Speaking to DT Next, station master, Royapuram railway station said, “The announcements are being made during peak hours so passengers. Also, RPF officers make two or three rounds per day to check on the passengers. The station has been under renovation for the past year. We are slowly checking the issues in the station and improving it.”