The railways seem to have finally woken up to the very real rage of the people that has been on simmer for years and that went on the boil on September 29, when 23 people lost their lives in an infinitely avoidable stampede on the narrow Elphinstone Road foot overbridge. Uncharacteristically eating humble pie, the railways have sought the help of the army to build the Elphinstone Road FOB, as well as two others that see very high footfall in the city. This is the first time ever that the army has been roped in for civil work.

Investigation into the tragedy had revealed that a revamp of the bridge had been mooted back in 2015. Letters going back and forth between Shiv Sena MP from south Mumbai, Arvind Sawant, who had demanded a complete overhaul of the station, and the railways ministry, elicited a cryptic response from the latter. The then railways minister, Suresh Prabhu, sent a letter back to Sawant saying the request was ‘under our positive consideration’. Officialese that could be translated as ‘we don’t really care how urgent the need for a revamp is’.