Roaches infest Ernakulam-Okha coach
Vastrapur resident Vishwas Joshi relives the travails of travelling in an AC 3-tier coach that was full of mosquitoes and cockroaches
“I am sharing our harrowing experience with you as I faced a situation which I don’t want someone else should go through in future,” said Vishwas Joshi, the Vastrapur resident who travelled by that train.
Like many other passengers, Joshi boarded Ernakulam-Okha Express (Train # 16338) at Ernakulam junction on July 06 at 19:45 and arrived at Maninagar station in Ahmedabad on Sunday at 08:56. Recalling the travails, he said, “We were travelling by 3 tier AC coach B2, but condition of the coach was worse than sleeper class. Curtains were joined by a thin wooden stick but then also I was fixing the curtains all the time.”
Showing the photographs he had taken of the compartment and shared with Ahmedabad Mirror, he said, “There was a menace of cockroaches in the entire compartment due to which we weren’t able to sleep for two nights. On top of this, when I talked to attendant he didn’t pay heed to the situation.”
Unable to cope with the conditions, Joshi requested the attendant to provide him with an anti-allergy tablet so that he could sleep, but to no avail. “When I drew the attention of the travelling ticket examiner to our woes, all he said was, ‘Ok, ok’, and went away. Either he did not understand my language or he did not realise the seriousness of the situation.”
Joshi finally tried to contact the railway’s complaint number 8121281212, but it remained “not reachable”, he said, showing off the allergic conditions he had developed on his skin due to cockroach and mosquito bites. Joshi also complained of poor catering service. Either the pantry service was not on or the attendant never came to the compartment.
Ventilation was so poor that passengers often had to come out of the enclosure and stand near the door to get fresh air, he added.
Yogesh Avasthi
Posted On Monday, July 09, 2012 (http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/article/3/2012070920120709024538268d9b32e34/Roaches-infest-ErnakulamOkha-coach.html)
Curtains were joined by a thin wooden stick. Joshi developed skin infection due to cockroach and mosquito bites
Little did the passengers of AC 3-tier coach knew what lay ahead of them when they boarded Ernakulam-Okha Express that reached city on Sunday morning.
If mosquitoes and cockroaches were not enough, lack of ventilation ensured that they stayed awake two nights. Complaints to the travelling ticket examiner and the coach attendant fell on deaf ears and the passengers had no option but to suffer the 37-hour journey.“I am sharing our harrowing experience with you as I faced a situation which I don’t want someone else should go through in future,” said Vishwas Joshi, the Vastrapur resident who travelled by that train.
Like many other passengers, Joshi boarded Ernakulam-Okha Express (Train # 16338) at Ernakulam junction on July 06 at 19:45 and arrived at Maninagar station in Ahmedabad on Sunday at 08:56. Recalling the travails, he said, “We were travelling by 3 tier AC coach B2, but condition of the coach was worse than sleeper class. Curtains were joined by a thin wooden stick but then also I was fixing the curtains all the time.”
Showing the photographs he had taken of the compartment and shared with Ahmedabad Mirror, he said, “There was a menace of cockroaches in the entire compartment due to which we weren’t able to sleep for two nights. On top of this, when I talked to attendant he didn’t pay heed to the situation.”
Unable to cope with the conditions, Joshi requested the attendant to provide him with an anti-allergy tablet so that he could sleep, but to no avail. “When I drew the attention of the travelling ticket examiner to our woes, all he said was, ‘Ok, ok’, and went away. Either he did not understand my language or he did not realise the seriousness of the situation.”
Joshi finally tried to contact the railway’s complaint number 8121281212, but it remained “not reachable”, he said, showing off the allergic conditions he had developed on his skin due to cockroach and mosquito bites. Joshi also complained of poor catering service. Either the pantry service was not on or the attendant never came to the compartment.
Ventilation was so poor that passengers often had to come out of the enclosure and stand near the door to get fresh air, he added.
