DABOLIM: No one is for this Dabolim. No one fights for this this piece of Dabolim, to improve it, to preserve it, to make it fit for use. And yet this Dabolim is right next to the Dabolim airport, rotting, a den of anti-socials but “looked after” by just one man- the station master of Dabolim railway station.
Trains still run through and some passengers still frequent it, but its turned into a cowshed and a convenient meeting place for drunkards. Speaking of which let’s meet M A Hamid, the protagonist of our story and the only one at that. Hamid (53) is station master, signalman, ticket vendor, ticket collector and sweeper of the rather crucial Dabolim station, considering that it is the last stop for trains that terminate at the South Western Railway’s Vasco da Gama terminus. And the man does it all strengthened by a bottle of whisky.
“I start my day at 4 am with a glass of whisky. By 7 am I complete the cleaning of platform and office. At 7.10 am I start issuing railway tickets to commuters of passenger trains (Vasco-Kulem), at 12 noon I complete almost all my work (except for signals to passing trains). This is how I have been living here for the last several years,” said Hamid.
He acknowledges his whisky drinking habit saying, “I keep enjoying a glass of whisky throughout the day. In a day, I finish a full bottle.”
Hamid, who has been posted at the Dabolim railway station for the last 12 years, has seen the rise of illegal activities and structures adjacent to railway tracks on government land and under the flight path of commercial flights and advanced and sensitive naval planes. He is also witness to anti-social activities at the railway station but is helpless, being alone.
The Dabolim railway station was constructed during the Portuguese regime and was a ‘halt station’ without a platform with just a signboard stating ‘Dabolim’. In the 1970s, after Zuari Industries started operations at Birla-Sancoale, the station was upgraded and welcomed by Dabolim villagers.
Vasco resident, Advocate Rajan Naik says, “My father was the contractor for the British India Railways and it was he who laid down the railway lines to Vasco. He had told me that Dabolim was upgraded considering future growth, but we never thought that the station would one day become a den for anti-social elements with people avoiding it even though it is close to their residences,” What Naik said was evident when Herald visited the station. The railway station, once the pride of Dabolim, is deserted except for some anti-social elements and is rarely used by commuters.
“The station is close to my home but I prefer going to Vasco to commute by railways. There are drug addicts, alcoholics and others who have made this station their second home,” says Dabolim resident and businessman Baban Zore.
The railway station today shows signs of neglect. There is no provision for drinking water and the taps run dry, the waiting room has turned into a cowshed, the platform is occupied by stray dogs and anti-social elements, toilet facilities are non existent, the ticket room is also Hamid’s home and the station resembles a garbage yard.
The divisional railway users consultative committee member of south western railway, Chandrakant Gawas when contacted acknowledged that he is aware of the issue.
“I know of all that is going on at the Dabolim railway station and I’m waiting to take up this issue in the board meeting which is due anytime. We have to ensure that Dabolim railway station which was once pride of Dabolim gets a face lift .Till it actually does, the only cheer in this desolate place is when Hamid raises his glass of whisky every few hours. It’s a lonely cheer.
