Post 26/11: Pune rly station most insecure

Mid Day

Pune: Even after the Mumbai attacks, the Railway Police Force (RPF) has hardly learnt from the mistakes. Except the main entrance, all other entry and exit points at the Pune railway stations are unmanned.

About 4,000 commuters use the city railway station everyday in peak hours. They have all the reason to feel insecure as there are hardly enough personnel to man the entry and exit points.

RPF Commissioner R B Roopanwar said the force in Pune is 60 per cent short of manpower.

Station Manager C D Pounikar, said there are around 150 trains that use the Pune railway junction in a day. "The number of commuters has shot up in the last five to six years."

There are around five legal entry points at the station. But at least six others that are illegal, according to an RPF source. "Now, we are going to build a wall around the station on the lines of Pune airport," said Roopanwar.
The Pune RPF has around 67 personnel, of which 15 will retire soon. Around 70,000 people were recruited at the central level for RPF, but they have been moved to the special railway force. "This is a policy matter," said Roopanwar.