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Bhubaneswar, July 13: The first Humsafar Express to operate from Orissa chugged out of Bhubaneswar railway station Thursday, opening what appears to be a new chapter for rail transport in the state. The 16-coach train is claimed to be different from the pack particularly in terms of passenger safety. Besides 16 airconditioned, 3-tier coaches, the train has a pantry car and two guard-cum-generator cars.
Orissa POST took a look at the features the new train boasts of and found out what its users — passengers on the maiden run — felt about the new train. The coaches do appear impressive with their new-look exterior, which the railways claims is “vinyl-coated making it graffiti resistant”. They are a distinct departure from the plain old coaches from the older stock of rakes. Anil Nayak, one of the passengers booked on the inaugural run, agreed: “The exterior design is at
tractive and different from other trains.” He expressed hope that the public and railway officials would take good care of the coaches and see to it that they were in no way damaged. The interiors of the Linke Hofmann Busch coaches, too, hold some interesting features that could offer a comfortable journey to passengers. It has charging points at each column berth which are bound to help passengers keep their communication devices fully charged along their journey. The
mini pantries with coffee and tea machines appeared to impress at least some passengers. Bibhu Prasad Rao, who was travelling to Vizianagaram, said, “Mini-pantry is a unique feature on this train and it offers big comfort to passengers on a long journey. I also liked the design of the curtains in the cabins which would help maintain privacy. The seats are also quite comfortable compared with other trains.” While bio toilets and odour control systems are welcome additions to the coaches, it is still early days to comment on their efficacy. Humsafar Express features modern toilets with plush interiors, and passengers such as Nirakar Sahoo, who was headed for Brahmapur, felt these could offer a welcome relief from the discomfort of using toilets in older trains. “Getting fresh toilets with odour control is indeed a great relief. The facilities are bad on other trains. This feature is attractive,” he said. The announcement systems installed in every coach, too, has given passengers more reason for cheer. But one feature that is expected to enhance passenger safety is a fire detection and suppression system. The coaches are equipped with very early smoke and fire detection systems besides CCTV cameras for monitoring safety. For Satya Narayan Deo, the chief benefit of the system is a smoking-free journey. “The best smoke-detection system is said to have been installed on this train. They are so sensitive that they may even be set off by someone smoking. That will perhaps make this train smoking-free,” he quipped. On a serious note, though, another passenger Dr Mrutyunjaya Rath said, “The best quality has been provided to passengers to protect them from the breakout of a fire. This would be a revolutionary change for passengers.”
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