The Indian Railways have tightened safety rules in the operation of private trains/coaches by issuing fresh guidelines for catering services and security checks.
While the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has been assigned the task of providing food to passengers in private trains/coaches booked on Full Tariff Rate (FTR), security and railway staff would conduct pre-departure check to prevent carriage inflammable items such as gas cylinders. The move is to prevent and discourage passengers from carrying gas or other fuel stoves for cooking on trains.
The decision comes a month after a private coach transporting pilgrims went up in flames in Madurai leaving nine passengers dead and a few others injured. Preliminary investigation revealed that a gas cylinder exploded when a passenger tried making coffee in the coach that was detached from a regular express train and moved to the yard side during the wee hours of August 26, 2023.
