KR Puram: A shelterless station

The KR Puram station may have helped decram Bangalore City Railway Station, but it does have its own set of problems. It serves as one of the transit stops between Byappanahalli station and Whitefield station.  The station is equipped with three platforms and two tracks for non-stop trains. An overbridge facilitates the movement of travellers from one platform to another. However, the overbridge does require patchwork in places. The steps leading to the bridge are worn out in most places and neither does the bridge have sufficient lighting. To add to it, there are people who seem to have made the bridge their transit resting place. “Unlike the the Cantonment railway station overbridge, this one is quite narrow. With people resting on the bridge, over stepping and tripping is bound to happen,” said Philip a frequent traveller.The condition of the platform could be passed off as relatively clean. However, the problem is not just the cleanliness, it is the over head roof. The platforms are only partially covered. “Coach number 20 and beyond come at the far end of the station. This particular section has no shelter. The only respite is that there are enough number of benches. However, what does one do when when it rains? There is no place to go to for shelter,” said Joshua, a student of the college near by.Apart from the condition of the platform, the information systems on stations also need to be mended. Though the announcements are made regarding the arrival of the trains, they are not audible enough. Fedric Anand, an IT professional informed City Express that all the inquiries he made about the rain delays go unanswered. He said, “The enquiry officer who is suppose to provide us with information is unable to give us any sort of information about the delay in the arrival. As a result one is unsure of how long to wait.” Another issue mentioned by Daisy, a housewife regarding the information system was that there is no information regarding where which coach will be stationed once the train arrivesWith problems such as these, it is of utmost importance that the authorities take immediate action for the welfare of the locals. When contacted, the station in charge was unavailable for comments. however, the public relations officer for Bangalore railways, Biswas, said that he had no information about the problems. “I had no idea about the problems pertaining to the KR Puram station. I will inform the concerned engineers about the same and have the problems attended to at the earliest.”