The ‘Expected in Minutes’ (EIM) panels on platform indicators of Central Railway in Mumbai have been non-functional for the past three years, despite repeated assurances that they are being tested and will be operational soon. As a result, commuters at railway stations have no way to know how long it will take for a train to arrive.
Copy-paste replies by Senior Divisional Signalling and Telecom Engineer (Sr.DSTE) in 2023, 2024 and 2025, that testing is on
While private and third-party mobile apps provide such information, the railway’s official system has yet to catch up. At most stations, the EIM panels are either blank or display “zero.” The delay stems from the ongoing process of linking and integrating the Train Management System software with these indicators, which has been in progress for the past three years.
“Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, also minister for information technology, electronics and information & broadcasting was in Mumbai last week to announce a unified ticketing system ‘Mitra’ for seamless multimodal travel based on Open Network for Digital Commerce in Commuter Convenience (ONDCC), but the team at Central Railway in a city like Mumbai cannot fix their indicators since past three years,” Jayesh Ashteley, a commuter from Dadar said.
“The indicators and ‘Expected in Minutes’ countdown work well on Western Railway trains but have not been functional here. It proves very helpful at one glance of the indicator. We need to check for the apps separately to get authentic data on the location and movement of the train. The railways should provide their own real-time data so there is no confusion,” another commuter said.
“The problem also leads to safety issues. It is leading to crowding on foot overbridges at stations like in this instance Ghatkopar. People wait on the bridge for slow or fast trains and then run for whichever arrives. It may lead to accidents,” another commuter said. “I have continuously tweeted about this major issue but the Central Railway has no answers,” commuter advocate Rajesh N Kalote said.
What is the problem?
Sources said that the Train Management System (TMS) software was initially installed by one company, but it has since been taken over by another. As a result, there is no technical support, no electronic cards available, and no Annual Maintenance Contracts (AMCs) in place. Finalising a new tender will take time, with the estimated cost ranging between R300-400 crore for implementation up to Kasara, Karjat, and the Harbour line.
Official comment
“The process to import the required equipment from abroad has begun and this year the EIM will be commissioned between CSMT to Kurla,” an official spokesperson said.
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