Kannur:  There seems to be something strange and unusual on the southern side of the tracks if you move a few metres from the Kannur railway station. A particular point on the track is more prone for accidents and in a span of 7 months, 8 persons have met with accidents at this particular point.  And all of them had fallen off from the footboard of the train. Most of the injuries suffered by those who had fallen off on to the tracks were grievous in nature. This particular point is situated a few metres away from the Thavakara overbridge.
The latest incident relates to a Dharmadam native Chandran, who fell on to the tracks from the Mangala Express on Saturday. The man...
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who was injured on his head was taken to the AKG hospital in Kannur. It is to be noted that a Mambaram native and a teacher was also injured a few months back from the same spot.
Passengers allege that the technical faults on the tracks could be the reason for the frequent accidents that occur at this particular spot. However, the railway authorities do not buy that theory and said as the trains begins its journey, unusual jerking is common and that could be the reason for persons falling off trains.
But what is to be noted is that these kind of accident-prone zones near railway stations are not seen anywhere. Passengers said that the railway authorities must examine for cracks or any technical faults on the tracks. These accidents are just a warning to those who regularly travel by trains on the route sitting on the footboard.

Srinagar, Apr 22: Visitors to Kashmir would be able to get a delightful view of the breathtaking rural landscape next month onwards as the Tourism department and Railways are introducing a see-through vistadome coach on the only rail line here.
The vistadome coach for Jammu and Kashmir was announced in June last year by the then Union Railways minister Suresh Prabhu at a function here.
The vistadome coach has arrived here and it will be introduced in May, Director Tourism, Kashmir, Mahmood Shah told PTI.
Shah,...
more...

who inspected the 40-seater coach at Railway Station Budgam, in central Kashmir, a few days ago, said the see-through coach would provide enjoyable experience to passengers.
The air-conditioned coach has large glass windows, glass roof, observation lounge and rotatable seats allowing passengers to experience breathtakingly beautiful locations and sites en route the 135 km rail track from Baramulla to Banihal.
The specially-designed vistadome coach also has double wide-reclining seats which can be rotated 360 degrees for better panoramic view of surroundings.
It also has glass-domed ceilings, automatic sliding doors, luggage racks, LED screens for entertainment and a GPS-enabled information system.
The seats are also attached with trays similar to those in airplanes for having meals and passengers can order light meals to be made available on the menu during the journey, the director said.
He said initially, one 40-seat coach will be attached to the train and others will be attached after gauging the response.
Shah said the department would promote the vistadome coach among travellers who can enjoy stunning locations along the route.
Such coaches are available only at tourist locations where passengers want to enjoy sightseeing. We will involve local travel agents who can customize packages for travellers, the director said.
He said the department would also make a drone video for its promotion.
Currently, Kashmir is full of spring blooms of various flowers and blossoms of various fruit trees. The train also passes through various mustard fields which is an attraction for travellers, he said.
An official of the Railways said preparations are underway for starting the vistadome coach and once announced, its booking can also be done online at "click here
Vistadome coach is not the only new attraction for tourists in Kashmir this year as the Tourism department is also starting a regular sound and light show to draw visitors and provide them with more entertainment avenues.
The director said the sound and light show, which will also showcase the history of Kashmir, will be a regular feature at SKICC, on the banks of the famous Dal Lake, here.
The preparations are in the final phase and we are most likely starting it next month, Shah said.
He said such new features would increase the valley's portfolio and help attract more tourists to Kashmir by providing them more to experience.
The tourist season in Kashmir is off to a good start even as there has been some kind of violence in the form of encounters, civilian protests and protests by students over the rape and murder of a minor Bakerwal girl in Kathua in Jammu region.
There has been a good start and we are making progress. But we are also vary that, God forbid, any untoward incident could have a devastating impact on tourism, the director said.
While Shah refused to provide a definite number of tourists arriving in the valley and Ladakh region on daily-basis, he said they are coming in very good numbers and the arrivals are much better than the last year.
He said over 1.70 lakh visitors have so far visited Asia's largest tulip garden which was thrown open, this year, on March 25.
The visitors get to see 12.25 lakh Tulip bulbs, of 40 varieties and colours, in the garden spread over an area of 10 hectares.
The tourism players in Kashmir are also upbeat about the tourist season this year.
We are getting good arrivals and enquiries are also increasing. We expect the bookings and arrivals to increase next month and hope the situation does not deteriorate, a travel agent here said.

Senior railway officials today said that pre-monsoon works, to ensure heavy rains don't stall train traffic in the metropolis and adjoining regions, had begun and a review was carried out by the civic body chief and general managers of Western and Central Railways.
The work, officials said, involves the cleaning of drains and culverts that run beneath the rail tracks, removal of muck, trimming of branches of trees, surveying hilly areas for loose boulders and provision to drain out excess water from low-lying rail areas in case of heavy monsoon rains.
"The Brihanmumbai...
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Municipal Commissioner and GMs of WR and CR have reviewed monsoon preparedness works. The civic chief has promised all help to the railways to ensure that heavy monsoons do not disrupt train traffic," a senior civic official said today.
Chief spokesperson of CR, Sunil Udasi, said, "The preparatory work for monsoon started from February-March 2018. We have cleaned 79 culverts. An additional opening at Tilaknagar has been provided to curb flooding in Kurla area."
RELATED NEWS Podcast | Top Karnataka politicians and their ever-growing riches Railways' unit IRSDC to raise Rs 4,000 cr to speed up station redevelopment projects DD vs KXIP IPL 2018 live score, updates: DD win toss and choose to bowl first. Gayle rested by Punjab He said that 25 spots within the jurisdiction of CR's Mumbai division had been identified for immediate attention.
"We have also requested the BMC to provide pumps that have a water-draining capacity of 1,000 cubic metres per hour at Kurla and Mukhyaadhyapak nullah at Sion," he said.
He said that the BMC had assured the railways that it would take action to ensure water from civic areas was not discharged onto railway territory, especially near Sandhurst Road station.
"The BMC has also promised that it will get one building, deemed unsafe, at Sandhurst Road station vacated before the arrival of the monsoon," Udasi said.
WR chief spokesperson Ravinder Bhakar, in a statement, said that general manager AK Gupta had met civic chief Ajoy Mehta and works like cleaning of storm water drains, clearing of dumped garbage, shifting of overhead pipelines and other issues were discussed. TAGS #Current Affairs

Srinagar, Apr 22: Visitors to Kashmir would be able to get a delightful view of the breathtaking rural landscape next month onwards as the Tourism department and Railways are introducing a see-through vistadome coach on the only rail line here.
The vistadome coach for Jammu and Kashmir was announced in June last year by the then Union Railways minister Suresh Prabhu at a function here.
The vistadome coach has arrived here and it will be introduced in May, Director Tourism, Kashmir, Mahmood Shah told PTI.
Shah,...
more...

who inspected the 40-seater coach at Railway Station Budgam, in central Kashmir, a few days ago, said the see-through coach would provide enjoyable experience to passengers.
The air-conditioned coach has large glass windows, glass roof, observation lounge and rotatable seats allowing passengers to experience breathtakingly beautiful locations and sites en route the 135 km rail track from Baramulla to Banihal.
The specially-designed vistadome coach also has double wide-reclining seats which can be rotated 360 degrees for better panoramic view of surroundings.
It also has glass-domed ceilings, automatic sliding doors, luggage racks, LED screens for entertainment and a GPS-enabled information system.
The seats are also attached with trays similar to those in airplanes for having meals and passengers can order light meals to be made available on the menu during the journey, the director said.
He said initially, one 40-seat coach will be attached to the train and others will be attached after gauging the response.
Shah said the department would promote the vistadome coach among travellers who can enjoy stunning locations along the route.
Such coaches are available only at tourist locations where passengers want to enjoy sightseeing. We will involve local travel agents who can customize packages for travellers, the director said.
He said the department would also make a drone video for its promotion.
Currently, Kashmir is full of spring blooms of various flowers and blossoms of various fruit trees. The train also passes through various mustard fields which is an attraction for travellers, he said.
An official of the Railways said preparations are underway for starting the vistadome coach and once announced, its booking can also be done online at "click here
Vistadome coach is not the only new attraction for tourists in Kashmir this year as the Tourism department is also starting a regular sound and light show to draw visitors and provide them with more entertainment avenues.
The director said the sound and light show, which will also showcase the history of Kashmir, will be a regular feature at SKICC, on the banks of the famous Dal Lake, here.
The preparations are in the final phase and we are most likely starting it next month, Shah said.
He said such new features would increase the valley's portfolio and help attract more tourists to Kashmir by providing them more to experience.
The tourist season in Kashmir is off to a good start even as there has been some kind of violence in the form of encounters, civilian protests and protests by students over the rape and murder of a minor Bakerwal girl in Kathua in Jammu region.
There has been a good start and we are making progress. But we are also vary that, God forbid, any untoward incident could have a devastating impact on tourism, the director said.
While Shah refused to provide a definite number of tourists arriving in the valley and Ladakh region on daily-basis, he said they are coming in very good numbers and the arrivals are much better than the last year.
He said over 1.70 lakh visitors have so far visited Asia's largest tulip garden which was thrown open, this year, on March 25.
The visitors get to see 12.25 lakh Tulip bulbs, of 40 varieties and colours, in the garden spread over an area of 10 hectares.
The tourism players in Kashmir are also upbeat about the tourist season this year.
We are getting good arrivals and enquiries are also increasing. We expect the bookings and arrivals to increase next month and hope the situation does not deteriorate, a travel agent here said.

A look into the Lifeline Express, India's 'hospital on wheels' meant to provide crucial medical services in rural India
The Lifeline Express (LLE) is the world’s first hospital on a train. It was started on July 16, 1991, with the intention of taking the hospital to the people of rural India, for whom healthcare facilities are inaccessible. The train is run by Impact India Foundation. (Image: Reuters)
The LLE holds camps of 21-35 days. The camps include treatment of patients in those areas and training programmes for the local doctors....
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(Image: Reuters)
The train has a blood bank has a post-operative care facilities. For several years, LLE was limited to surgeries for cataract and clubfoot. With new coaches, donated by the Indian Railways, LLE now has services in cancer detection and orthopaedics. (Image: Reuters)
The train gives volunteer doctors and medical students an opportunity to hone their skills while doing satisfying community work. (Image: Reuters)
The train has an ophthalmologic testing room, a dental unit, an X-ray unit and an auditorium with a LCD display unit. LLE also has a public address system and closed-circuit TV. (Image: Reuters)
LLE offers plastic surgical correction of cleft lip, post burn contractures, counselling, referral and nutrition assessment services along with immunisation and other preventive measures.