Women who travel by train in India need not fear from now onwards with the women Railway Protection Force (RPF) taking the lead in the safety of women passengers. Launched in South Eastern Railway in September 2020, the service of the RPF was started in South Central Railway (SCR) last week, which is to be introduced in the other divisions.
The women friendly service — ‘Meri Saheli’ – is aimed at safety of women travellers, especially the women who travel alone.
Eight trains running the Southe Central railway will now get the service of Meri Saheli. Godavari Express, Rayalaseema Express, Nandigram Express, Sachkand Express, Golconda Express, Golconda Express, Mysore Express and Amaravati Express are the eight trains.
The ‘Meri Saheli’ team consists of women Railway Protection Force (RPF) Sub-Inspectors and other personnel. The women passengers would be made aware of about all the precautions that have to be taken at the time of travel. The women passengers can dial 182 in case of any emergency,
As part of the initiative, the RPF personnel collect the seat numbers of women passengers and hand over them to the respective RPF teams at the railway stations enroute the journey. The RPF team at the stations will then monitor the passengers in the respective stations. They also interact with these passengers to make sure that they are safe.
While the train is on the move, the women passengers will always be under the surveillance of the RPF team.
The “Meri Saheli” initiative was started as a pilot project in South Eastern Railway in September 2020 after getting response from lady passengers.
