The Ahmedabad Division of Western Railways (WR) on Friday began fast-tracking the work of converting railway coaches into isolation wards for coronavirus suspects to supplement the medical infrastructure of institutional quarantine of the state, especially in Ahmedabad, which is one of the hotspots of Covid-19 in India. In this national initiative, the Western Railway has been asked to turn 420 coaches into isolation wards. Of these, 70 will be converted by the four depots of Ahmedabad Division. These sleeper coaches are about 20 years old. Officials said that a decision on scrapping or reuse of these coaches was under consideration at the Railway Board in Delhi. However, before any decision could be reached, coronavirus struck. This made it easier for the government to take the call to convert these coaches into isolation wards for eight patients each plus doctors’ quarters and changing room. These coaches will then be attached to trains, when required, to deploy mobile hospitals wherever the need arises. An official said, “Of the four toilets, one is being turned into a specialised bathroom for disabled and the elderly.” Of the 70 to be built here, 50 would be built at the three depots in Ahmedabad, Kankaria and…