Railways suffered losses worth Rs 80 crore during anti-CAA protests, to recover from vandals

Indian Railways suffered a loss of over Rs 80 crore during the anti-Citizenship law protests in West Bengal, Railway Board Chairman VK Yadav said on Monday.

Talking to the media, Yadav said that the amount could go up further as zonal railways are yet to send an exact figure of losses.

"Panels were set on fire. Signaling systems were damaged at seven railway stations while there was also partial damage at 15 other stations," he said.

He further added that damages will be recovered from those who were involved in arson.

"The RPF is coordinating with the state governments to identify the culprits. Once they have been identified, efforts will be made to recover the damage," said Yadav.

The statement from railways comes days after the Uttar Pradesh government initiated a crackdown on anti-CAA vandals and said that losses from damaged public properties will be recovered from the miscreants.

The official also informed that railways has floated tenders for installing CCTV cameras at all the stations and in all the coaches by March 2022. "By December this year, the railways has installed CCTVs at 503 railway stations across the country."

Under the Nirbhaya Fund, Rs 500 crore have been received for the installation of CCTV cameras on the railway premises across the country, Yadav said, adding that the railways has also allotted Rs 2,000 crore for the installation of CCTV cameras at over 6,100 stations and in over 58,600 coaches.

He said that the railways will also be using facial recognition and Artificial Intelligence to identify culprits.

Clarifying on privacy issues and surveillance of passengers, Yadav said, "The CCTV in the train coaches will be fitted in the common area and it will not compromise with the privacy of the passengers."

Violence had broken out in parts of West Bengal when people protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) vandalised public properties and torched vehicles.

(With inputs from DNA India and agencies)