Railways agrees to Maharashtra govt’s proposal to allow women to travel in local trains from Oct 21

Union Railways Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said the national transporter will allow women to travel on suburban trains in Mumbai from October 21 between 11am to 3pm and after 7pm. He said the decision was taken after receiving a communication from the Maharashtra government.

“I am happy to announce that Railways will allow women to travel on suburban trains from 21 Oct between 11 am to 3 pm & after 7 pm. We were always ready and with the receipt of letter from Maharashtra Govt today, we have allowed this travel,” Goyal said in a tweet.

The state government last week allowed women to travel in local trains starting October 17. The Secretary of Disaster Management, Relief and Rehabilitation Department, issued an order saying women will be allowed to board local trains during two-time slots during the day.

However, the Western Railway (WR) and Central Railway (CR) later refused to oblige without getting the green signal from the Railway Board, and working out the necessary modalities to permit women commuters.

Women comprise around 40 per cent of the total 85 lakh commuters and the move would help lakhs of women office-goers in the government and private sector, academics and other sectors who need to travel by the Mumbai local trains daily.

Presently, the women are compelled to spend around 4-5 hours daily only in commuting by roads from distant suburbs which takes a toll on their mental and physical health, besides affecting their responsibilities both at home and workplaces.