Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi (HB/SP)

Udupi, Oct 2: A 58-year-old Vijaya Bhagwath fell into a pit on Sunday, September 29, when getting down from her train at Barkur station near here, which lacks a proper platform. Now she is suffering due to severe injuries in her leg, on account of which she has been admitted into KMC hospital for treatment. She has undergone two surgeries to her leg and needs over six months to recover completely.

According to her daughter Supriya R Kamath, a complaint was lodged in Brahmavar police station duly explaining that her mother, Vijaya, was travelling by Karwar Express train along with her husband and two grandchildren. At 9.30 am on Sunday, the train reached her station at Barkur where the train was stopped. This train does not have a proper platform and all the passengers were asked to get down in the middle of the tracks. She was trying to alight from the train, when she fell down into the pit, because of which her ankle bone protruded out of the skin.

Supriya says this this happened because of pure negligence of the railway officers. A number of complaints on this issue have been lodged with the police station over a long period but no action has been taken, she claimed. The passengers are also facing the problem in boarding the train at the concerned station.

The family of Vijaya has undergone physical and emotional trauma. She needs at least six months to get back to normal life. She lost Cartilage, the surgeon has informed the family.

Hence, Supriya lodged complaint in Brahmavar station on Monday, October 1 regarding the case and she has demanded that in future all the trains have to be stopped only at the platform. She is demanding an apology letter from the railways and confession letter from the railway authority admitting to their mistake.

This happens every now and then, whenever Matsyagandha Express, which arrives from Mumbai and Karwar Express which comes from Bengaluru reach the station at the same time. At that time Karwar express train should be stopped at a place where a proper platform is available, the complainant has demanded.

This railway station has always been posing danger to the lives of aged passengers.

A live witness, Rahul Naik, expressed his anger over the issue and wrote to Konkan Railway, duly posting a photo of Vijaya on Twitter. He also pressurized the railway department for demanding to take necessary action to build a scientific platform immediately at Barkur station.

According to the general public, there was a proposal of building a sophisticated platform, which will help many aged people. But later the proposal was dropped.

The passengers have also been demanding the railway authority to build a platform at Barkur station immediately.