Cuttack, Mar 13: Two pantry car employees were arrested during surprise inspections by railway officers and the Railway Protection Force (RPF) for unauthorized use of electric immersion heaters to prepare tea on long-distance trains, posing serious fire and safety risks.

The RPF Post Cuttack conducted checks on Train No. 12507 Trivandrum Silchar Aronai SF Express and Train No. 12516 Silchar-Coimbatore Coimbatore SF Express, covering the Cuttack-Jajpur Keonjhar Road sections. During the inspections, staffs were found using high-power immersion rods connected to passenger charging sockets intended only for mobile phones and lights-to heat water in steel cans for extra tea service.

In the Aronai Express, Sahdullah (34), an Assistant Pantry Manager from Chandauli, Uttar Pradesh, admitted using a 5-litre immersion rod to boil water without his manager’s knowledge, despite knowing the practice was prohibited. On the Coimbatore Express, Surajit Chakraborty (27), a pantry staffer from Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, admitted a similar violation.

Both immersion rods were seized, and the employees were arrested under Section 179(2) of the Railways Act for offences under Sections 153 and 145(c), which include endangering passenger safety and health. Cases have been registered as C3C-873/26 and C3C-874/26, dated March 12, 2026. The accused were produced before the SDJM, Cuttack, and released on bail.

RPF officials stressed that unauthorized high-load appliances are strictly banned in trains to prevent short circuits, fire hazards, and health risks, warning railway staff to adhere to safety norms at all times.