Vizag railway station bags Safaigiri Award

Visakhapatnam: The Visakhapatnam Railway Station has won the Safaigiri Award-2018 for all-round cleanliness in the state and for adopting environmental-friendly measures.

The Visakhapatnam Railway Station, which is directly monitored by Divisional Railway Manager in the recent times, has achieved several milestones in maintaining the premises at all parameters. The footfall of Visakhapatnam Railway station is around 70,000 per day and serves more than two lakh passengers traveling over Indian railways.

Creating civic sense among commuters travelling in trains, adopting modern methods in cleanliness in trains and at stations, beautification of railway premises, creation and installation of cleanliness and waste management practices are a few key factors in achieving the Safaigiri Award-2018.

While sharing the happiness at a media conference on winning the prestigious award, Divisional Railway Manager, Waltair division, Mukul Saran Mathur, said that Visakhapatnam Railway station daily receives about 120 trains per day of which 40 trains start from Visakhapatnam station. Each train stops here for 20 minutes as loco reversal necessary. It is a hectic task to clean the entire track each time, once the train left the platform, he added.

However, with integrated mechanised cleaning strategy by deploying 227 trained staff per day, the station is being maintained very clean. The intensified cleaning on platforms, track, circulating area and toilet blocks for five times in a day played vital role in getting the award, the DRM said.

As many as 7 jet machines, 4 scrubbers, 2 industrial vacuum cleaners, 2 steam cleaners have been provided for cleaning of tracks. The frequency of cleaning of platforms has been increased to 5 times in 24 hours, Mathur explained.

The frequency of garbage disposal has been increased from 2 times to 3 times a day. Over 900 cubic metres of garbage collected per day in the station premises is being disposed to municipality nominated dumping ground for final disposal as per the norms.

The station is also having bottle crushers to recycle the pet bottles. Plastic is being recycled through bottle crushers on an average of 20 to 30 kg per day, the DRM said. Visakhapatnam railway station is also getting a world-class modern toilet block, first-of-its-kind in Indian railways, named as refreshing lounge with modern amenities like recliners and shower baths apart from modern toilet facilities, DRM Mathur told the media.