Acute staff shortage is preventing the implementation of a railway order to deploy lady cops on the ladies compartments of all trains, a railway official has said.

There were no security personnel on the Ernakulam-Kottayam passenger train when girl students in the ladies compartment of the train came under attack from an intruder near Kuruppanthara on Thursday morning. The police arrived on the scene only after 20 minutes of the incident.

“The combined women staff of Railway Protection Force (RPF) and GRF in the Ernakulam region is nine. But, in reality, only seven are available for deployment in trains,” the officer said.

The trains in which women cops are currently deployed include the 11.30 am Ernakulam -Kottayam passenger, the 6.05 pm Ernakulam-Kottayam passenger, the Shoranur passenger and in Express trains like Venad and Kurla.

One of the problems with the women staff was that they could not be deployed on night or early morning trains, the officer said, adding they often had to seek the help of the women’s cell.
“But they can’t be deployed in trains as they are outside staff,” he said.

Thursday’s incident, coinciding with the first anniversary of the assault and murder of a girl, Soumya, on a train in Shoranur, brings to light the insecurity of women travelling alone in trains.

Then the railways had announced that women personnel would be deployed in all passenger and other major trains.