Stone-throwing at moving trains is one of those strange and dangerous practices which has continued for years despite the fact that it may maim or even kill an innocent passenger. A stone hurled for fun by a boy standing beside a railway track takes only a second to hit a train travelling at speed. But for the passenger sitting by the window, that one thoughtless act may mean loss of an eye, broken teeth, severe head injury or lifelong disability. Consider the case of 17-year-old Sabbir Hossain, who was hit beneath his right eye by a stone thrown at the Drutojan Express in Sirajganj in July. Doctors feared that the vision in his injured eye might never return. What kind of amusement is this that leaves an unsuspecting traveller permanently disabled?
According to Bangladesh Railway (BR), 110 incidents of stone-throwing were recorded between January and July this year and 31 people were injured. The number itself should be enough to dispel the impression that these are isolated acts of mischief by some village boys. In fact, railway officials and safety experts have long been saying that schoolchildren and young boys living close to railway tracks often engage in the practice out of curiosity or as a pastime. But there are also cases where students, local troublemakers and even disgruntled transport workers, particularly bus workers, are alleged to have attacked trains during disputes, demonstrations or rivalry involving road and rail transport. Whatever the motive, the stone does not know the difference between prank, protest and sabotage. Its victim is invariably an innocent passenger or railway employee.
The problem has lately become particularly serious on the Chattogram-Cox's Bazar railway route. Railway records show repeated attacks around Ramu, Islamabad-Eidgaon, Dulahazara and Chakaria. In one such incidents in April, two passengers of the Cox's Bazar Express were injured at Chakaria, one of whom lost four teeth. Bangladesh Railway has therefore decided to identify vulnerable spots, involve local leaders, distribute awareness leaflets and inform the Government Railway Police (GRP) immediately after such incidents. These are necessary steps. But one wonders why such an old and recurring problem should still require fresh decisions every few years.
There is, in fact, no shortage of law to deal with the offence. Sections 126 and 127 of the Railway Act, 1890 provide severe punishment for acts involving throwing stones or other objects at trains where passenger safety is endangered. An offender may face imprisonment extending to ten years or even life imprisonment depending on the offence. So, the issue is not absence of punishment on paper. The point is to implement the law. Identifying a person who throws a stone at a fast-moving train from a trackside locality is admittedly difficult. But difficult does not mean impossible. Railway police, local police, railway staff and communities living beside known hotspots should work together. CCTV cameras at repeatedly affected stretches, patrols at vulnerable hours and local intelligence can also help.
However, punishment alone cannot solve a social habit whose perpetrators are often juveniles including schoolboys. Schools near railway lines should regularly tell students what a stone can do when it strikes a person at the combined speed created by a moving train and the projectile. Parents and guardians, local teachers, imams, public representatives and community leaders should also be involved. Children need to understand that damaging a train is damaging public property bought with their own people's money, while injuring a passenger is no prank but a serious crime.
Awareness-building accompanied by strict enforcement of the law is the only way this dangerous pastime of throwing stones at moving trains can be stopped. The railway cannot place a policeman beside every kilometre of track. Ultimately, the communities through which trains pass have to become their protectors rather than silent spectators. A child with a stone in his hand should be stopped before he throws it, not after a passenger has lost an eye.
