‘Wasn’t scared; all I wanted was to resume journey without delay,' says brave TTE who fixed pressure valve mid-bridge

Ben Thampi, the travelling ticket examiner (TTE) who heroically restored a pressure valve on a train that had halted on the Aluva railway bridge after a passenger pulled the emergency chain, is now being hailed as a star in social media. Driven by the urge to ensure that passengers could resume their journey without delay, Ben acted without a second thought and leapt down onto the tracks to fix the issue. Removing his official uniform, he daringly climbed down between two coaches via the vestibule and managed to restore the valve. The train resumed its journey within 10 minutes.

Ben, a native of Kottayam and an official under the Palakkad Division, is receiving praise from colleagues, friends and social media alike. He shared his experience with Mathrubhumi.

“I was in another coach when the train stopped. It was the emergency chain in the AC coach that had been pulled. Initially, I didn’t realise that we were on a bridge. When the chain is pulled and the train halts, the pressure valve must be reconnected for the train to move again. This is typically the guard’s responsibility, and I don't have the authority to do it. But since we were on a bridge, the guard couldn’t reach the spot.

“The loco pilot informed me that reconnecting the pressure valve would allow the journey to resume. The Vande Bharat train was right behind us, and we were already running 10 minutes late. My only concern was to get the passengers moving again without further inconvenience. That’s why I decided to climb down onto the bridge and fix the valve. I wasn’t afraid at the time. It didn’t feel dangerous either.

“I climbed down only after getting permission from both the loco pilot and the guard. Since we were on a bridge, there was no way to climb down from the side. So I took off my uniform and got down between two coaches through the vestibule and restored the valve. We were able to restart the journey within 10 minutes. Climbing down wasn’t too difficult.

“It’s been two years since I joined the railway service, and this was the first time I faced such a situation. We are trained to handle these things during our training period. There are many hardworking people in the railways — cleaners, guards and many others. They’re the real heroes. It’s just that people don’t know their names,” Ben said.

The incident occurred at 8.50 am on Monday, when a passenger in the AC chair car of the Thiruvananthapuram–Mangaluru Ernad Express pulled the emergency chain. The passenger had mistakenly left behind a bag containing a relative’s passport and other documents at Aluva station and pulled the chain in a panic. The RPF has filed a case against him for unnecessary use of the emergency chain.