I had taken the Nilgiri Express to Coimbatore on Dec 15th and had a 3rd AC ticket. Once we boarded the train and found out side berths, all we could see were cockroaches streaming out of every vent, they were crawling all over the seats, on the sides, curtains, on the floor - and I am not exagerating when I say we must have killed atleast 50 and there were several still around. People around us seemed very used to it and didn't bother about it.

It is rather agonizing to see that a 3rd AC compartment is so badly maintained. The attendant I am sure saw the cockroaches but made no attempt to do anything about it.

I have travelled on Southern Railways for ever and always thought it was better than other regions, but it seems to be going to the dogs. And when I narrated my night of sleepless travel with the cockroaches to a bunch a people, everyone reacted in the same way - Oh thats how the trains are today.

Its a sad state of affairs and I do wish the responsible individual would take responsibility for the problem and fix it.