E. coli found in railway drinking water at 8 stations

A Comptroller and Auditor General report has found E. coli bacteria in drinking water at several major Indian railway stations, highlighting widespread failures in providing basic passenger amenities across the network. The audit, covering 512 nonsuburban stations from 2019-20 to 2023-24, revealed that 89 per cent of the stations surveyed were deficient in minimum essential facilities.

The report, tabled in Parliament on August 12, 2026, identified E. coli contamination in water cooler samples at eight stations. These included Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Bhiwandi Road, Kalyan, and Lonavala in the Central Railway zone; Hyderabad in the South Central Railway; Coimbatore and Palakkad Junction in the Southern Railway; and Madhupur in the Eastern Railway. Previous testing had also found total coliform bacteria, including E. coli, in platform tap water at 49 stations in the 2022-23 period and at 56 stations in the following year. E. coli can cause severe illnesses such as diarrhoea and kidney failure.

The CAG's findings extend far beyond water quality. The audit scrutinized compliance with a 2018 Railway Board directive that mandated Minimum Essential Amenities at all...