Miscreants remove rail bolt near Chennai, mishap averted

CHENNAI: Miscreants removed a key bolt from a railway switch at Thiruvalangadu Yard, located on the outskirts of Chennai, early Friday morning.
A mishap was narrowly avoided after Southern Railway’s Electronic Interlocking (EI) system detected the failure and raised an alert at 1:20 a.m.

A pointsman was dispatched to inspect Point No. 64 and discovered that the switch rail had been deliberately tampered with. Railway staff secured the point before any train movement.
Southern Railway stated that the system's real-time alert prevented a potential accident. This incident is similar to a bolt removal reported at Kavaraipettai in October 2024.
An investigation is currently underway, and surveillance has been intensified at vulnerable locations. The Railway has urged the public to report any suspicious activity near railway property.