The defunct scanner at Bhubaneswar railway station. Telegraph picture

Bhubaneswar, Feb. 9: Railway authorities are trying to implement integrated security system here, however, the luggage scanner installed at the entrance gate of Bhubaneswar station has been lying defunct since August last year.

The authorities point to the lack of local expertise — that will raise the repair cost — as the reason behind the machine lying out of order for a prolonged period.

Besides, sources said that there were other reasons such as complex official procedures, lack of an air-conditioned chamber and the manpower to operate it. Officials, however, said lack of local expertise in repairing the machine was the reason behind the delay.

The security gadget has been gathering dust for more than six months after developing technical snags. Installed in 2007 it had been driven by frequent technical snags. The last time this happened was in August 2013.

“Every time it showed a problem, we were forced to depend on the original manufacturer who had installed it here. They had to come from Delhi for repairs. This has been costing us a lot of money,” said a senior railway official. Besides, the field level officials said that they had been writing to their senior officers for repairing the machine, but no action had been taken. The situation has added to the worries of those managing security at the railway station.

Sources said there was also lack of manpower to operate the machine. While at least nine persons were needed in three shifts daily to handle the equipment, there are only three persons handling it.

Besides lack of knowledge to operate the gadget also makes it vulnerable to developing problems.

It is also being pointed out that this electronic machine needs an air-conditioned chamber like the one at the airport where the same kind of machine has hardly ever developed problems.

“If the luggage scanner is repaired on time, it will enhance the overall security environment at the station. We hope it will be active very soon,” said Varun Behera, inspector in charge of Railway Protection Force, Bhubaneswar.

“We are exploring two options currently for this baggage scanner. First, we are tying up with the original manufacturer for repair of the machine and second, we are installing an integrated security system at the station in which we will put up a new baggage scanner here,” said a senior railway official on conditions of anonymity.