Stone Pelting on Shatabdi Express from Delhi to Chandigarh, Passenger Shares Experience

Delhi: A glass window of the Shatabdi Express (Train 12045) - from Delhi to Chandigarh, suffered damage as an unknown person pelted stone on the train. A man traveling on the train shared his experience on X, after a stone was thrown at his train window. 

The incident happened on Monday, June 24, around 10:03 PM. According to the passenger, an unknown person threw a stone at the window next to his seat. No one was injured.

He immediately alerted the Railway Protection Force (RPF), who arrived at the coach and gathered details from him.

Stone-Pelting incidents on Vande Bharat trains

A similar incident was reported on 05 February in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Two Vande Bharat Express trains were hit with stones in different parts of these states. Officials expressed concern over the repeated damage to the premium railway service. While no injuries were reported, at least four windows were damaged.

The cost to repair or replace one windowpane can go up to Rs 22,000. One of the trains, the KSR Bengaluru-Dharwad-KSR Bengaluru Vande Bharat (20661/20662), was damaged twice, once during its onward journey and again during the return trip.

The train heading to Dharwad was the first to be hit as it passed the Chikkabanavara railway station in northern Bengaluru around 6:15 AM. It was attacked again during the return journey between the Haveri and Harihar stations around 3:30 PM, according to an official from the Railway Protection Force (RPF). The Mysuru-Chennai Central Vande Bharat (20608), which travels through Bengaluru, was also pelted with stones before reaching the Kuppam station in Andhra Pradesh around 4:30 PM.

Two of these incidents occurred in the Bengaluru railway division, specifically at Chikkabanavara and Kuppam. The third incident took place in the Mysuru division. In the Bengaluru division alone, there have been at least ten instances of stone-throwing on the Vande Bharat train this year. Last year, there were 40 such incidents. So far, 59 people have been arrested in connection with these acts, according to another official from the division.

Throwing stones at trains is a criminal offense, punishable by up to five years of imprisonment under Section 153 of the Railway Act.