18th UIC World Security Congress programme underway in India

The 18th UIC World Security Congress (WSC) commenced in Jaipur on Feb. 21.

An update from the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) issued on Feb. 22 informed that the three day conference is being jointly organised by the International Union of Railways (UIC), Paris and the Railway Protection Force (RPF).

The programme commenced with a welcome address by Sanjay Chander, Director General, RPF India, who is also the Chairman of Security Platform of the UIC.

He spoke on the importance of the Congress and the relevance of theme this year’s theme, “Railway Security Strategy: Responses and Vision for Future”.

The WSC is a globally recognised security platform that brings together representatives from member railway organisations, delegates of UIC, policy makers, senior law-enforcement officials from state polices and RPF to discuss the current security challenges and deliberate on innovative solutions in the Railway sector.

Ashwini Vaishnaw, Union Minister of Railways, Communications and Electronics & Information Technology, in his video message to the attendees, welcomed the delegates to the land of world’s largest democracy and one of the largest railway networks in the world.

He said the event is an excellent opportunity to showcase how one can work together to create a safer and more secure Railway sector for the future.

AK Lahoti, CEO and Chairman, Railway Board, in his virtual address, said that security of freight, passengers and assets of Indian Railways has been done exceptionally by the RPF which has a legacy as old as the Indian Railways. He highlighted how the UIC’s WSC provides an invaluable platform for exchanging ideas and best practices and for forging into new partnerships.

The keynote address was delivered by the Nobel Peace Prize laureate Kailash Sathyarthi, who called upon the delegates to develop child-friendly policies and urged industry members to be more responsible and open to innovative partnerships. He stressed that in the fight against the heinous crime of child trafficking, intergovernmental agencies must work together in an accelerated manner rising above a business-as-usual agenda.

On the occasion, a special UIC edition of the RPF Journal was also released. The special edition of the RPF Journal contains articles from leading professionals from Indian and International police and security organisations, senior officials with decades of experience in civil administration and industry experts.

The UIC established in 1922 is headquartered in Paris. It is the worldwide professional association representing the railway sector for research, development and promotion of rail transport.

The Security Platform of UIC is empowered to develop and formulate analysis and policy positions on behalf of the global rail sector in matters related to security of persons, property and installations.

RPF is the prime security and law- enforcement organisation at Railway Security in India. Constituted as a federal force in 1957, RPF is responsible for security of railway property, passenger and passenger zones.

The RPF personnel serves the nation and go the extra mile in their line of duty embodying its tagline “Sewa Hi Sankalp”- “A Promise to Serve”.

The RPF is now fully abreast of the dynamic security needs of the railway, its users and its stakeholders. It has also been implementing innovative solutions suited to the typical needs from ground-zero.

RPF has the distinction of being the federal force of India with the largest share of women in its ranks. Dimapur, Feb. 22 (EMN)