New railway gates to be installed

 A L Dias - Matale district group corr

The Transport Ministry has taken steps to fix railway gates at unprotected places and Rs 643 million is allocated for the purpose, Deputy Minister Rohana Dissanayaka said at a meeting in Matale.

The minister said at present, 486 unprotected railway crossings are identified in the country.

In the first round, 116 gates will be installed this year. Priority will be given to dangerous railway crossings.

A considerable number of accidents occurred during the recent past on unprotected railway crossings.

Accidents can be avoided under the new gate installation programme, he said. People should be vigilant regarding this matter, he added.