THIS is apropos the news item ‘Train kills three of a family at unmanned level crossing’ (July 5). The railway accident triggered a protest and the protesters blocked rail traffic for four hours.

It appears we have become a nation of protestors and agitators and start protesting and agitating even when the fault is with ourselves.

Take, for example, this incident. A train has a right of way on the railway track, and it is the duty of road users to ensure while reaching an unmanned level crossing, that no train is coming.

The railway manual provides that the vehicle should stop at the level crossing; the driver should look right and left to ensure that no train is approaching and then cross the level-crossing.

It is obvious that the motorcyclist did not do this and tried to cross the unmanned level crossing. If at all someone should protest for this incident, he should protest at the door of the house of the motorcyclist for causing the accident by his negligence and disrupting the rail traffic in the bargain.

It is outrageous to note that the sympathisers of the motorcyclist disrupted rail traffic for four hours and inconvenienced thousands of railway passengers.

It is the duty of the social leaders of the locality to enlighten and educate the populace in the matter of using roads in accordance with the law and after ensuring their own safety as well as the safety of other road users.

The news item also reveals that someone demanded that staff should be posted at the crossing. I am surprised that such a demand should be made. An unmanned level crossing is not supposed to have any staff and there are rules which provide for the establishment of manned and unmanned level crossing.

An accident at an unmanned level crossing is no justification for converting it into a manned level crossing.

It is unfortunate that politicians do not play their part in this regard and start pampering those responsible for such accidents.

Justice (r) Salahuddin Mirza

Karachi

Published in Dawn, July 22nd, 2017