Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, May 26: Standing tall, the unsung heroes of Government Railway Police (GRP) Jammu, have been working round the clock for over a month as frontline warriors saving numerous lives in fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
The frontline warriors, working behind the scene working 24×7 since the lockdown was announced on March 24, particularly since, special COVID trains started plying with stranded passengers on board and the departing with the same from Jammu Tawi Railway Station.
The GRP officers with teams of their men every day start their exercise in the wee hours and continue till late night with the departure of last train from the platform.
“Everyone across the country is engaged in fighting against the pandemic and similarly we are performing our duties round the clock,” a senior GRP official here told UNI on Tuesday.
“Like doctors, executive police, sanitary workers and other Corona warriors, we are also on toes 24×7 with a motive to contain spread of the pandemic and execute smooth functioning at the platform on the arrival and departure of the trains,” said an official. He further said that around 213 GRP personnel including officers of SSP, SP, DySP, Inspectors, Sub Inspectors ranks besides ASI’s, head constables and constables are engaged for the last over one month and are aggressively performing duties selflessly.
“The GRP machinery activates at around 0400 hrs every day, hours before the arrival of the first train and then begins the real test,” said an officer adding that requesting passengers to maintain social distancing by standing in a circle upto the registration counter, then them monitoring upto the sample collecting centres, checking stamps after sampling, lining them and escorting to the tent area where the passengers are provided meals and then have to make them de-board buses to their respective destinations.
“Starting from arrival of train and making passengers to board the buses, is a very hectic exercise but all is done in a planned manner with the management of entire staff from top to bottom,” said an officer adding that it has also to be ensured from both the ends that passengers do not de-board the train in a hurry to prevent accidents and for that additional deployment is made”.
Social distancing, escorting passengers to the counters, registration, deployment on both ‘Foot Over Bridge’, Sampling, Stamping, segregation outside the railway station for further action for district-wise boarding of buses, are the steps to be followed as per the SOPs and guidelines, which the GRP is outstandingly performing, the officer said.
“With the help of local administration, we have to work in close coordination to fight aggressively against the pandemic,” an officer added saying that in case there is no movement of buses on the national highway due to temporary closure, the GRP teams have to ensure that the passengers do not meet anybody in between.
“Not only at the Jammu Tawi Railway Station but the GRP men escorting the tracks upto Lakhanpur also have to remain more alert and vigil so that no passenger de-board the moving train or jump outside after leaving the platform,” an officer added.
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