Army to help build foot overbridge at Elphinstone station in Mumbai, where deadly stampede happened

Mumbai: A month after 23 people were killed in a stampede at the Elphinstone Road station in Mumbai, the Army will help in building a new foot overbridge. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis made the announcement after he along with Union ministers Nirmala Sitharaman and Piyush Goyal visited the station on Tuesday.

The Army will also assist in building foot overbridges at two other stations in Mumbai. "We are taking the Army's help in building a new FOB at the Elphinstone Road station and at two other suburban train stations in Mumbai," Fadnavis said.

"I have been informed that the work on these bridges will be completed by January 31," he added.

After the stampede on September 29, railway officials posted police personnel to manage the crowd on busy platforms, evicted hawkers from suburban train stations and started speeding up infrastructure projects on suburban network. 

After the tragedy, Railways Minister Piyush Goyal had announced a slew of safety measures including more manpower and additional escalators at crowded suburban stations. He had also said that the Foot Over Bridges (FOBs) would be deemed mandatory and not just a public amenity.

The Minister had also said that 200 officers from the headquarters will be relocated as field staff to enhance ground operations. "200 officers to be relocated from Head Quarters as field staff to strengthen ground operations and project implementation," Goyal had said.

He also said that to eliminate bureaucracy and delays, "I have empowered GMs to spend whatever is necessary on safety."