Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw notified the Rajya Sabha that the installation of surveillance equipment inside locomotives is not considered a breach of privacy. This came after the government’s suggestion to install a crew voice and video recording system in the loco cabins. The opposition, however, voiced concerns about the passengers’ safety and privacy.
All India Trinamool Congress MP Sushmita Dev questioned the Railway Ministry whether a plan has been devised with a mechanism to ensure that the privacy of loco pilots. There were speculations that the data might be used “punitively and not supportively”.
Vaishnaw’s take on CCTV surveillance
The Railway Minister replied that the motive behind the CCTV installation on trains is aimed at enhancing “safety and security in train operations”. He added, “Provision of CCTV is not considered a breach of privacy for loco pilots. It will work as a positive support for safe operations. It will also help in better training, besides helping in investigating the cause of the incidents in post-event analysis.”
Deteriorating quality of trains
Another series of rising concerns comes from the complaints about the food quality received by the Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC). More than 6,600 cases came forward, which led to more than 1,341 fines imposed on food suppliers by the rail ministry. Nearly 3000 warnings and advisories were issued in the remaining cases.
As a response to these issues raised in the Parliament, Vaishnaw claimed to take punitive action in case of adulterated or contaminated food being served on trains. According to the data, in 2023-24, 2022-23, and 2021-22, the number of complaints received from passengers was 7,026, 4,421, and 1,082, respectively, reported PTI.
Overall, the union minister suggested measures to maintain food quality, which included some reforms in the Base Kitchen. These vary from meal supply, CCTV surveillance, use of branded raw-material and deployment of Food Safety Supervisors.