ECoR Orders Safety Audit Of All Level Crossings

Bhubaneswar: In the wake of Puri level crossing incident, the East Coast Railway (ECoR) has decided to undertake a safety drive for level crossings under its jurisdiction.

General Manager Purnendu Sekhar Mishra has ordered a complete check-up of the system to avoid such incidents. “Unless we admit that there are deficiencies, we cannot work towards removing them,” he said in a statement.

There are 828 level crossings under ECoR jurisdiction. The safety audit will include testing the boom barriers, siren and warning boards. Loco pilots will be counselled for awareness of rules. Level crossing gatemen will also be tested on their working knowledge.

On Saturday morning at 7.25 am, Puri-Hatia Tapaswini Express passed through an open level crossing near Matiapada in Puri district. Preliminary reports found negligence on the part of the loco pilot and his assistant. They stopped the train for a minute and 50 seconds near the gate, but proceeded towards Puri Railway Station while the gate was still open. ECoR has suspended them.