A couple of weeks ago, five commuters tragically died after falling from local trains in Mumbai, prompting the Bombay High Court to express alarm over the rising death toll on the city’s suburban railway network. The court ordered Central Railway to implement automatic door-closure systems to prevent such incidents. Justice Marne highlighted the crisis, saying It is disturbing that 3,588 people died on local trains in 2024 alone, averaging 10 deaths daily, despite a reported 49% reduction in fatalities by the railway authorities.
The court’s directive underscores a critical oversight: why has Indian Railways, one of Asia’s largest and oldest railway systems, not implemented a straightforward solution like automatic door-closure systems? The issue came to light only after Yatin Jadhav, a Virar commuter, filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in 2024, highlighting the persistent safety crisis on Mumbai’s suburban railway.
Alas, this is not new. On September 29, 2017, at the Elphinstone railway station stampede, at least 23 people died and 39 were injured. The stampede took place on a foot overbridge (FOB) connecting the station’s platforms, during a heavy rainstorm. This particular incident happened due to extremely narrow staircases that are made on an equally narrow railway platform that caters to hundreds of commuters at any given time.
In a shocking revelation to the Bombay High Court, Indian Railways reported over 51,000 deaths on Mumbai’s suburban train network over the past 20 years. Data submitted by both Western Railways and Central Railways detailed the grim statistics of about 22,481 deaths on the Western Railway and 29,321 deaths on the Central Railway. These figures indicate the significant safety challenges faced by commuters on one of the world’s busiest rail systems.
Finance
Financial constraints, lack of expertise, and bureaucratic hurdles are often cited as reasons for the railway’s safety shortcomings, but these alone don’t explain the persistent neglect. In 2023-24, Indian Railways generated ₹2,56,093 crore in revenue, with a net surplus of ₹3,260 crore, according to the Press Information Bureau. However, Mumbai’s local trains, a critical revenue source and a lifeline to the city’s economic activity, incurred losses of ₹4,280.50 crore over three years, with earnings of ₹5,206.16 crore against ₹9,486.66 crore in costs, per The Economic Times. Subsidised fares and high operational costs contribute to this deficit, though AC local trains show potential for revenue growth.
Even though the Mumbai local train system is operating at a loss, it remains the lifeline of Mumbai’s economic activity. Despite its crucial role, it receives shockingly little priority. The people of Mumbai are neglected, forced to commute in overcrowded, “cattle class” conditions, and made to risk their lives daily simply to get to work.
India’s real poverty isn’t financial; it’s a poverty of Imagination
Railways, much like various other branches of the government and especially its municipalities, aren’t struggling due to a lack of funds, but rather a shortage of innovative ideas and work ethics.
It seems the idea of impermanence is so deeply ingrained in the Indian government that it struggles to create anything built to last even our own lifetimes. With such self-doubt about its own existence, how can it possibly aim to build something that transcends mortality?
Almost all the railway stations in Mumbai have been upgraded now. But the upgrade of the local railway stations is done as if a tribal society had, for the first time, learned how to utilise steel and concrete to create the most basic structures. That’s because the Railway does not consider lower-middle-class and poor people worthy of aesthetics.
Since Railway stations and urban areas are accessible to the poorest people. Improving the services in these areas to the level of the median income users would mean that the poor can also use them, and that these two organisations cannot tolerate. This neglect by the Railway Ministry and municipality reflects a systemic bias against prioritising quality and safety for all commuters, regardless of income.
For example, for approximately Rs 4,000, which is the minimum fare for a plane ticket, even a poor person can experience a world-class facility at any airport. This is because the airport services are designed the same for everyone since they all pay the minimum amount required to maintain those services.
While you may pay Rs 3,500 for a first-class train ticket, the services you receive are comparable to those offered to someone who buys a ticket for less than Rs 50. Because the railway can’t provide services to first-class travellers to those who only pay Rs. 50. And that’s why the railway station is maintained for the lowest fare payer, disregarding the needs of the highest payer.
And the open-door crowded locals are the extension of the above sociopathic ideology. But again, it’s not just the open-door local train coaches that are concerning; the Mumbai railway platforms themselves are a chaotic maze of staircases. Each station has numerous elevated bridges and an even greater number of staircases, all constructed haphazardly, with no apparent design or aesthetic consideration. And they are all inadequate or become so within a decade.
Mumbai Railways Station Upgrades, Primitive At Best
The sheer apathy evident in the maintenance of Mumbai’s platforms and trains is baffling, especially considering this is an institution with immense resources, capable of hiring the best talent in the world. Instead, it feels as though the infrastructure was built and is managed by a rustic, lone contractor without any expertise. And there is literally no quality control post any work done by anyone.
Perhaps the only redeeming quality of the local train system is its remarkably tight and well-maintained schedule.
It has been a standard thinking that Mumbai’s local train compartments don’t need closed doors because of the immense crowds; the railway authorities believe that if doors were enforced, trains might never be able to depart. Although a few years ago, they provided closed doors for the few AC trains, but they are too expensive for people of Bombay, and hence, they never get crowded and run smoothly.
Despite India’s significant economic growth and status as the world’s 4th largest GDP (by purchasing power parity), the persistence of shoddiness, apathy, and seemingly outdated systems in certain public sectors, like Indian Railways and the municipalities, is indeed perplexing. Is this due to a colonial bureaucratic inheritance, or simply a “chalta hai“ (it’s okay) attitude stemming from a monopoly mindset?
Is There Anything One Can do?
One can’t tackle the issues of train accidents and overcrowding without first addressing Mumbai’s soaring population and the urgent need for diverse transportation options like the Metro rail, buses, and even a ferry.
The city’s uncontrolled population growth and severe space crunch have pushed it far beyond its sustainable carrying capacity. This isn’t a new revelation; policymakers were well aware of these impending challenges in the 1970s, 80s, and even at the turn of the 21st century. The failure lies in their lack of foresight and planning.
For instance, while Dharavi is being redeveloped, a slum of comparable size has already emerged in Poisar since the early 1990s, encroaching upon the foothills of Sanjay Gandhi National Park. Rather than focusing on population management and expanding alternative transit, the city’s strategy seems to be endlessly adding flyovers. If you stacked them all, it would feel like Mumbai is getting an entirely new “first floor.”
Consider the population growth of Mumbai and New York City, even if the comparison isn’t justifiable. New York City’s population, at 8 million in 1949, remains roughly the same in 2024. In contrast, Mumbai’s population has exploded from 3 million in 1947 to a staggering 21.6 million today. This exponential surge in Mumbai is largely due to unchecked migration, resulting in a situation where one can literally find informal settlements or encroachments in nearly any part of the city, from upscale areas like Nepean Sea Road and Cuffe Parade to business districts like Nariman Point.
Mumbai, a global metropolis comparable to New York or London, has ambitions and needs that outstrip the vision of its local governance, including the municipality, Indian Railways, and political leadership. Its diverse population, drawn from across India, requires infrastructure and services that reflect its cosmopolitan character, yet local authorities often fail to meet these demands.
For Mumbai to truly become a cosmopolitan city, rather than a metropolis managed like a small African town, it needs a fundamental shift in governance: either be designated a Union Territory or a separate state, ensuring its diverse population gets proper representation.
In India, there must be a centralised mandate and control over urban planning and infrastructure development. This is critical for everything from constructing the simple, walkable concrete pavements common in Western cities (a stark contrast to India, despite its massive walking population) to building safe railway coaches and aesthetically pleasing platforms.
