Train robbers strike again in AP

Hyderabad, July 11: Train robberies are continuing unabated in Andhra Pradesh with robbers targeting passengers of another train late Saturday night and snatching gold ornaments, with the railway police failing to act quickly.

Police said robbers looted about 80 grams of gold ornaments from passengers on the Chennai-Kakinada Circar Express near Ulavapadu in Prakasam district around midnight.

Passengers complained that robbers snatched gold ornaments in darkness and got down after pulling the alarm chain near Ulavapadu railway station. Miscreants targeted women passengers of S4, S5 and S6 coaches.

The victims lodged a complaint with the railway police in Nellore town. They complained that the security personnel on the train failed to react quickly.

Robbers also made a vain attempt to target passengers of the Indore-Trivandrum Ahilyanagari Express in the same region Saturday night. They escaped after passengers raised an alarm.

Miscreants had looted gold ornaments worth Rs.1 lakh from passengers of the Secunderabad-Tirupati Padmavathi Express near Appikatla railway station in Guntur district early Saturday. They targeted passengers in four sleeper coaches.

Railway passengers are worried over the increasing train robberies on the Guntur-Gudur-Nadikudi section in south coastal Andhra.

The latest incidents took place despite the Railway Protection Force (RPF), the Government Railway Police (GRP) and the Guntur district police stepping up vigil and coordinating their efforts.

A series of train robberies was reported last month. Women passengers travelling on the Secunderabad-Tirupati Narayanadri Express were deprived of their ornaments near Sattenapalli railway station in Guntur district June 11.

A day later, dacoits snatched gold ornaments from women passengers of Secunderabad-Gudur Simhapuri Express between Khammam and Madhira railway stations.

On June 16, an armed gang looted 40 tolas of gold from passengers Chennai-Hyderabad Chennai Express between Nadikudi and Pandugula stations in Guntur district.

–IANS–