RPF catches five carrying firecrackers at Chennai Central and Egmore stations

The Railway Protection Force (RPF) has stepped up checks at Chennai’s railway stations for Deepavali and caught five people carrying firecrackers at Chennai Central and Egmore, The Hindu reported on 7 November. During an awareness drive at Chennai Beach station, nine people were fined for trespassing on the tracks.

Carrying firecrackers, gas cylinders, kerosene or other inflammable goods on a train or in a station is an offence under Section 164 of the Railways Act, 1989, punishable with up to three years in prison, a fine, or both. The risk is real in the festival rush: a single spark in a packed, closed coach can start a fire that spreads within minutes.

Walking along or across the tracks, instead of using foot overbridges and subways, is also an offence under the Act, and the RPF runs drives every festival season, when crowds are largest, to warn passengers.

Passengers who see someone carrying crackers on a train can alert the RPF on the railway helpline, 139.