Patna, Aug. 13: Railway passengers can now feel more secure while travelling through Bihar. For, more than 3,500 new posts in different ranks have been created in the Government Railway Police (GRP) to help keep more vigil on running trains and railway platforms.

Sources in the state police headquarters said the administrative cadre post committee has approved the proposal for creation of 3,514 posts in the GRP. “The proposal was pending with the committee for the past several months,” a senior police officer said.

According to the proposal, there would be one more post of deputy superintendent of police, one post of inspector, 69 posts of sub-inspectors, 252 posts of assistant sub-inspectors, 539 posts of havildars and 2,652 posts of constables respectively. “With the creation of more posts, the GRP will be able to deal with railway crime more efficiently and provide escort on more and more trains that pass through the state,” additional director-general of police (railway) S.K. Bhardwaj said.

At present, GRP personnel man 223 trains passing through Bihar, while Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel are present on 65 trains. Official records put the number of trains passing through Bihar everyday at 1,107, while several others cross the state without any police escort.

Sources said a total of 3,149 constables have been deployed for providing security to the railway passengers. “While some trains have just four or five armed policemen, most trains have no policemen on board,” a GRP official said. The state, however, witnessed a spurt in incidents of crime on trains, particularly on long distance trains in the latter half of 2010. On an average, three-four incidents of loot and dacoity were reported everyday.

An alarming rise in crime on running trains had prompted the GRP to work out a detailed plan. During investigation, GRP officials found criminals primarily targeting trains without escort party.

Over a dozen trains, including Lal Quila Express, Ernakulam Express, Danapur-Howrah Express, North East Express and Brahmaputra Mail, were attacked by dacoits and passengers looted.

Palamu Express was the most targeted train with the maximum number of armed robberies and hence, got the nickname of “Nightmare Express”. Patna-Gaya, Mughalsarai-Jhajha, Danapur-Mughalsarai, Patna-Kiul, Gaya-Mughalsarai, Hajipur-Gorakhpur, and Barauni-Samastipur sections of the East Central Railway have been identified as the most vulnerable routes.

A recent report of National Crime Record Bureau shows in the past eight years, Bihar recorded a total of 2,076 crimes on trains, which is around 11 per cent of the crimes that the railway police reported from all over the country. The bureau’s report revealed that 51 per cent of all train robberies occurred in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh and that the jurisdiction of Patna railway police alone accounts for 23 per cent of all crimes on trains committed across the country.