CHENNAI: Chennai Central records a footfall of over four lakh daily and sees volumes of parcels in transit to different parts of the country. But the system falls weak in ascertaining the contents of the packages that make way to their destinations through trains. “Randomly, a few packages are checked. The volume of packages received is huge and we don’t have the wherewithal to check each one of them. We are working with the commercial department to improve the system of tracking the parcels,” said a senior RPF official.
Currently, rail passengers can book their luggage to be transported on trains on which they are traveling or book them as parcels to be delivered to their destinations through other trains.
“There are no scanners to check what is passing through. For the luggage at the entrance there are scanners and usually, people moving in and out are asked to show their tickets, but for luggage booked by trains, no such checks are done”, an RPSP (Railway Protection Special Force) personnel at the station said.
Another RPF official said given the huge size of the station, number of visitors and the poor strength of the security force, it is difficult to provide a cent per cent secure environment. “There are six ways to enter Chennai Central premises. There is also one through the parcel office. Even the public do not cooperate. If we ask them to show their tickets, some start questioning us. We, from RPF, are for their safety and protection, but public cooperation is needed,” he said. “When we find suspicious faces around, we do make sure that their tickets are checked, but the public should also take up the responsibility to adhere to the ticket and baggage checking measures,” he said.
“The touts at the parcel office make it all the more difficult,” he added. “None of the security measures is implemented because of them”. An official at the parcel office told this correspondent that anti-narcotics officials do carry out checks sometimes, but no scanning of packages takes place. Currently, Chennai Central has 82 CCTV cameras and 43 more will be installed soon.
A senior RPF official said the whole process has to be streamlined. Commercial department of the railways is mulling installation of CCTV cameras at the parcel and luggage booking premises. “This would help track parcels and also keep an eye on touts and other unauthorised persons. Since the scanning machine has its own limitations and the volume is huge, we are considering surveillance using intelligence officials who could check people avoiding security checks,” he said.
