Margao: Passengers using the Kulem railway station are facing significant hardships due to infrastructural defects that have left the main platform wet and slippery, and in places, waterlogged, particularly during the monsoon.The Kulem railway station serves as a gateway to popular tourist destinations, including the Dudhsagar waterfall and the Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary. However, despite its importance as a transit hub for both tourists and locals, the station’s infrastructure leaves a lot to be desired.The immediate concern stems from a design flaw because of which rainwater gushes onto the platform due to improper alignment between the roof of the platform and that of the newly constructed station building located right behind the platform.This misalignment has created a huge gap between the two structures that lets showers inside the platform. The accumulation of rainwater on the platform, coupled with inadequate drainage, creates treacherous conditions for passengers attempting to board and alight from trains.Regular commuters, including office workers and students, are the worst sufferers. Also particularly vulnerable are the elderly commuters, sources said.“The platform becomes extremely slippery, and this poses a serious threat to passengers,” said a regular commuter on the Kulem-Vasco local train. “Senior citizens, schoolchildren, college students, and women are all at risk of falls due to these dangerous conditions. There were many such incidents of people slipping and falling while boarding or alighting from trains.”Another regular commuter said, “With both the floors and the benches wet, the commuters find no proper place to keep their belongings, let alone sit.”Compounding the problem, the station platforms serve as a nighttime shelter for stray cows and dogs, leaving the area filthy by morning hours when commuters arrive to catch the early local train.Regular commuters have demanded that the railway authorities urgently address the issues.
