Audit finds 90% of 512 major stations deficient in essential amenities, with even New Delhi, Mumbai Central and Howrah failing basic passenger-service standards
A damning audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has exposed serious gaps in basic passenger amenities at India’s railway stations, including contamination of drinking water with E. coli and other coliform bacteria.
The CAG examined passenger services at 512 non-suburban railway stations across the country and found that 458-nearly 90%,were deficient in Minimum Essential Amenities (MEA) prescribed by the Railway Board.
Water quality emerged as a major concern. Tests conducted during 2022-23 and 2023-24 detected total coliform bacteria, including E. coli, in drinking-water samples collected from platforms at stations across several railway zones. The affected locations included stations in Coimbatore, Palakkad, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Madhupur.
The findings are particularly alarming because E. coli contamination can indicate faecal pollution and pose serious public-health risks.
The audit also found glaring shortages of basic facilities at some of the country’s busiest stations. Mumbai Central, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Howrah, Sealdah and New Delhi were among the NSG-1 stations found lacking in facilities such as adequate seating, sanitary amenities, dustbins and electronic indicator boards.
Railway Board guidelines issued in 2018 mandated essential facilities,including drinking water, toilets, urinals, seating, shelters, fans, foot-over bridges, dustbins, clocks and public-address systems at stations.
The CAG noted that these facilities were supposed to be ensured by August 2018, yet major gaps persist years later.
The audit has called for stricter inspections of water systems and comprehensive testing of drinking water under the prescribed quality protocols.
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