Petition urges railways to use choppers for rescue work

MUMBAI: Helicopters should be used for relief and rescue operations when there is a railway accident, Vikash Verma, an entrepreneur, has demanded in a public interest petition filed in the Bombay high court.
He has sought the implementation of the recommendations of the Justice H.R. Khanna committee on railway safety in the wake of Rajdhani train accident on September 9,which killed 129 persons.
Criticising the rail authorities for the dismal disaster-management operations after Rajdhani accident, Mr Verma said railways dispatched the relief and medical aid to accident site at Rafiganj by a train instead of using a quicker option of a helicopter.“I was shocked to see railwaymen using ‘dandas’ (sticks) to break open the windows of affected coaches,’’ he told TNN. He alleged that the rescue teams at the site lacked cranes, gas cutters and search lights.
The petition states that rescue operation was carried out under petromax lights provided by the villagers at Rafiganj and a grill-cutting machine was brought to the site a full two days after the accident.