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The maintenance of Law and order and protection of VIPs is the constitutional responsibility of the State/Union Territories’ Governments, “policing” being a State subject. However, in order to supplement the efforts of the State Government in controlling crime, the Railway Protection Force Act, 1957 and the Railways Act, 1989 have been amended and the Railway Protection Force is being deployed on trains and Railway premises to assist the State Governments. Now all the important trains are being escorted by the Railway Protection Force & Government Railway Police. Railway Protection Force provides an average of 1217 train escort parties and the Government Railway Police provides and average of 2102 train escort parties to provide the passengers including VIPs safe and secure journey. Out of this, 12 escort parties are provided on Rajdhani Express and 17 escort parties are provided on the Shatabdi Express per day by Railway Protection Force and the Government Railway Police. Escort parties are deployed as per the crime trends and trains affected.
The crime trends are periodically reviewed and analysed in the coordination meetings held between the Government Railway Police and Railway Protection Force officials as well as higher level coordination meetings between the Railways and the State Governments. Arrangements are modified and deployment adjusted in co-ordination between the State Governments and the Railways.
Close co-ordination is maintained with the intelligence agencies and the State Governments so that co-ordinated measures are adopted depending on the threat perceptions and intelligence inputs.
Actionable intelligence is shared by the intelligence agencies with the Railways. However, in order to effectively assist the state Governments in controlling crime, the vacancies in the Railway Protection Force are being filled up and additional road vehicles and communication equipments have been provided.
The above information was given by the Minister of State in the Ministry of Railways Shri R. Velu in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha today.
HB:BKS:CKB
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