Attacking the Narendra Modi government over the Friday foot overbridge (FOB) stampede disaster in Mumbai in which at least 22 people were killed and scores injured, the principal Opposition Congress party on Friday raked up the bullet trains row, accusing the Modi government of indulging in “misplaced priorities” like bullet trains while ignoring the critical task of improving the basic safety and infrastructure of the Indian Railways.
Expressing her shock and anguish over the Mumbai tragedy and extending her condolences to the families of the deceased, Congress president Sonia Gandhi described it as a “man-made disaster”.
“Such accidents could have been avoided if there had been proper planning and concern for railways safety,” Sonia said, hoping that the government would conduct a “proper inquiry” into this disaster to “fix responsibility and accountability”.
Hitting out at the Modi government over the Mumbai stampede incident, the All India Congress Committee (AICC)’s chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala said, “The Modi government is talking of bullet trains but basic facilities are missing”.
AICC spokesperson Sushmita Dev held the Railways Ministry “criminally culpable” for its alleged “negligence” and “inaction” that led to today’s disaster in Mumbai. She charged that the Railways did not take proper action despite having admitted in 2015 that the FOB between Elphinstone and Parel stations in Mumbai is “structurally weak”.
Highlighting the alarming rise in rail accidents and mishaps across the country, Sushmita said, “Altogether 259 passengers have been killed and 973 injured in 29 major railway accidents since the Modi government took office, even as this government has raised railway tariff by 70%.” She added that “India led the world in rail accidents by recording the maximum number of casualties and accidents in 2016”.
She claimed that more than 1.42 lakh posts have been lying vacant in the Indian Railways, most of which are related to the railways safety categories.
Demanding a safety audit of of all FOBs, platforms and overhead bridges of the entire Mumbai suburban railway system, the AICC demanded a judicial inquiry by a sitting judge into today’s stampede disaster there.
“The Modi government has misplaced priorities. Instead of spending money on bullet trains, it is high time that the money should be spent on improving basic infrastructure,” Sushmita said, adding that “PM Modi should give real solutions for the Railways Ministry rather than changing its Ministers only.”
On 14 September, Prime Minister Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe had jointly laid the foundation stone in Ahmedabad for India’s first high speed rail project, commonly known as bullet train project, between Ahmedabad and Mumbai. This ambitious Rs 1.10 lakh crore project is envisaged to cut Ahmedabad-Mumbai travel time substantially, with the proposed bullet train covering the 508-km stretch between the two cities in less than three hours at an average speed of 320 km per hour.
Japan would give a soft loan of Rs 88,000 crore at merely 0.1 per cent interest for this project, which could be paid back over a period of 50 years.