Mumbai: The Railway Protection Force (RPF) has decided to procure night-vision goggles to tackle robbers who operate under the cover of darkness. The Central Railway (CR) will be the first to acquire them for its personnel on train escort duty and guard duty at railway yards and other sensitive railway areas.

CR's RPF Chief Security Commissioner B S Sidhu said, "Sometimes, we are restricted by the fact that robbers commit crimes on running trains and run away in the dark after stopping trains between stations. This happens especially in deserted areas. These goggles will enable us to track them in such cases. The goggles will help our personnel tackle criminals even in railway yards and other areas that are not lit in the night."

S C Parhi, senior divisional security commissioner of RPF, said "We will be acquiring about 80 night-vision goggles for the Mumbai Division. The goggles cost between Rs 1 lakh to Rs 2 lakh each, depending on the features."