CM plea to Rly Minister on level crossings

Chennai, Apr 17 (UNI) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi today urged Railway Minister Lalu Prasad to convert all unmanned level crossings in the country into manned level crossings, even as he expressed anguish over yesterday's accident at an unmanned level crossing in Kancheepuram District in which 11 people were killed.

Replying to a special calling attention motion moved by the ruling DMK, Opposition AIADMK, Congress, PMK, CPI(M) and CPI, he said the Railways, which earned a profit of Rs 12,000 crore, should allocate at least Rs 5,000 crore for posting personnel at all unmanned level crossings.

Descrbing yesterday's accident as tragic and gory, he said accidents could not be totally averted but taking precautionary measures like posting personnel at level crossings would help avert at least 80 per cent of such mishaps.

Mr Karunanidhi also urged leaders of political parties to advise and caution their cadre to take all precautionary steps, whenever they took part in party functions or rallies.

Eleven people, including nine Village Administrative Officers, were crushed to death when the van in which they were travelling was hit by a passenger train at Agaram unmanned level crossing near Kancheepuram.

UNI