Western Railway earns Rs 116.86 cr from ticket-less travellers

The Western Railway (WR) Tuesday said that it has earned Rs 116.86 crore from ticket-less travellers in the last eleven months. The WR detected 25.17 lakh cases of ticket-less or irregular travel, including cases of unbooked luggage, between April 2018 and February 2019, which resulted in the recovery of Rs 116.86 crore from penalties, the WR said in a statement.

The cases were detected during the regular checks conducted by 2,363 ticket checking staffers, it added. "This time, the recovery is 17.67 per cent more as compared to the corresponding period last year, when Rs 99.30 crore was recovered in the form of penalty," it said.

Ravinder Bhakar, chief spokesperson of the WR said, "There is a judicious deployment of ticket-checking staffers. Ticket checkers are deputed in local as well as mail or express trains, while some are deployed on stationary duty on platforms. These staffers are classified as mobile force and stationary force respectively." During the festive season, ticket checking activities get intensified, he said.

"If a passenger fails to pay the dues on the spot, he is produced before the magistrate and prosecuted under sections of 137 & 138 of the Railways Act, 1989," he said. The Western Railway comprises six divisions- Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Rajkot, Bhavnagar and Ratlam.

(With inputs from agencies.)