The CAG found E. coli in station water coolers, and 89 percent of audited stations short of basic amenities

The Comptroller and Auditor General's report on passenger amenities and sanitation at non-suburban railway stations was tabled in Parliament on 12 August. Coverage of the water findings has kept circulating through the weekend.

Auditors looked at 512 stations drawn from 5,908 non-suburban stations that, in 2023-24, ran 7,424 passenger trains a day and carried 292.4 crore passengers. Water samples from coolers tested positive for E. coli at eight stations: Coimbatore and Palakkad Junction (Southern Railway), Hyderabad (South Central), Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Bhiwandi Road, Kalyan and Lonavala (Central), and Madhupur (Eastern). E. coli is a marker of possible faecal contamination.

Platform taps showed total coliforms, including E. coli, at 49 stations in 2022-23 and 56 stations in 2023-24. Bacteriological analysis was not done at all at 59 stations across six zones. Chlorine levels sat outside the prescribed 0.2 to 0.5 parts per million at 135 stations in 2022-23 and 139 in 2023-24.

On amenities, 458 of the 512 stations (more than 89 percent) were short of one or more Minimum Essential Amenities. Only 54 stations had no shortfall. The gaps included fans (42 percent), water coolers (40 percent), drinking water taps (27 percent) and urinals (22 percent). CSMT, Howrah, Sealdah, New Delhi and Mumbai Central were among the big terminals flagged. Between 36 and 44 percent of the passenger-amenity budget went unspent each year from 2019-20 to 2023-24.

This is not a shortage of rules. The Railway Board told zones in April 2018 to put the minimum list in place by 31 August 2018. The CAG says the same shortfalls showed up in earlier audits in 2007, 2013 and 2016. Passengers still fill bottles from coolers at CSMT and Kalyan. The report says the problem is monitoring, unused money and weak follow-up, not a lack of funds.

The CAG has asked the Railways to inspect water systems on the prescribed schedule and test every parameter in the Uniform Drinking Water Quality Protocol. It also wants station-wise, time-bound plans for the amenity gaps. Whether the eight cooler sites are retested, and published, is the first thing to watch.