Dipanjan Mondal
12 June, 2025:
The Union Railway Minister took strong action against four railway officers who assigned an unsuitable train with poorly maintained coaches for Border Security Force (BSF) personnel traveling from Tripura to Kashmir for duty during the upcoming Amarnath Yatra.
In a statement, the Railway Ministry said that Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had taken serious note of the deployment of an “unsuitable/old train” for BSF personnel traveling from Tripura to Kashmir for duty. “Following the lapse, four officials from the Alipurduar Division have been immediately suspended,” the statement added.
Railway officials said another special train was being arranged for the journey of the jawans. The action followed videos posted on social media by a BSF personnel on Tuesday (June 10, 2025), showing the train in a severely deteriorated condition. The footage revealed garbage scattered across the non-air-conditioned coaches, filthy and unusable toilets, collapsed sections of the roof, worn-out seats, and cockroaches crawling on the floor.
The suspended officials include the Coaching Depot Officer of Alipurduar and three Senior Section Engineers of the Alipurduar Division.
“The Ministry of Railways has also ordered a detailed inquiry into the entire incident. All efforts are being made to ensure that such lapses do not recur in future,” the statement said. “The Railway Minister has made it clear that the dignity and comfort of security forces are of the utmost priority and that such negligence will not be tolerated at any level,” it added.
