Jareikela station lies in neglect

ROURKELA: Declared abandoned in 2006, the dilapidated railway station building at Jareikela in Sundargarh district, bordering Jharkhand, poses serious threat to the lives of employees and passengers.  Ironically, there is no obvious reason for the inordinate delay in setting up the proposed new building by the Chakradharpur Division of the South Eastern Railway (SER). The nondescript Jareikela station, about 30 km from Rourkela, falls in the Maoist-hit Bisra block. The existing station building is one of the oldest with asbestos roof. It houses the office, ticket counter, rest room and track signal system. The walls have developed wide cracks and the artificial ceiling is dilapidated.Nearly a dozen SER staff in different shifts fear for their lives while on duty.When rain lashed the area for days together last month, they feared that the structure would cave in. An old giant tree at the backyard is also leaning dangerously on the weak structure. Local weaver of Kopsingha village in Jareikela gram panchayat, Somnath Raha said the SER seems to have no concern for innocent lives. Expressing surprise at the whimsical attitude of the SER, he said while the platform floor is being laid with new tiles, there is no sign of a new building. Chakradharpur-based SER spokesperson AK Haldar promised that the Division would probe the matter for immediate corrective measures. SER sources said the record of the present ongoing construction project does not reflect the new station building plan.