Page 2 - Railway Ministry

Experts call 25% cap on railway waiting list 'uneconomical, impractical'

The Railway's decision to limit the passenger waiting list to 25 per cent of the capacity of each class has been flagged by reservation supervisors, ticket booking clerks and some senior commercial officers as uneconomical for the railways and inconvenient for travellers. The ministry, however, has justified the decision, saying less than one-fourth of the total number of waiting passengers get confirmed berths on an average and the 25 per cent cap has been placed in view of that. "The decision was made after meticulously studying the waiting list confirmation pattern," said Dilip Kumar the Executive Director of Information and Publicity, Railway Board. He highlighted that earlier, there was an allegation that the Railways allowed a lot of passengers to book berths in the waiting category which led to crowding in trains. "It was also alleged that the Railways earned money on ticket cancellation." Refuting the charge, Kumar stressed the Railways was more concerned about passenger ..

Mumbai tragedy: Railways may expand local train services to 4,500 a day

Mulling phaseout of old coaches as retrofitting technically tough, says top official

Tatkal tickets to be available only for Aadhaar-verified users from July 1

The Railways Ministry said allowing only Aadhaar-authenticated users for Tatkal train tickets will help ensure the Tatkal scheme's benefits reach genuine, common users

Railways begin trial to confirm waitlisted tickets 24 hrs before departure

A trial was launched in which the confirmed status of waiting list passengers was announced 24 hours before a train's departure, instead of the current practice of notifying passengers just 4 hours before, the Railway Ministry said on Wednesday. Ministry officials assured that the pilot project would become part of the policy only after receiving a positive response from the passengers. "We have started this pilot project in the Bikaner Division, where charts are being prepared 24 hours before the train departure. The current practice is doing so before 4 hours," Dilip Kumar, Executive Director, Information and Publicity, Railway Board, said. He noted that this trial was being done keeping in mind the concerns of passengers who remain uncertain about their journey due to a waiting ticket. "Now, if they know 24 hours before that their tickets are confirmed, they can plan their travel better," he added. However, once a ticket is confirmed, passengers will lose a substantial chunk of

Railway minister say Tatkal tickets will need Aadhaar: How will it help you

Digital verification step is expected to significantly misuse of train ticket quota by touts and unauthorised agents

Railway Ministry permanently cancels ₹402 cr Mathura-Vrindavan project

The Railway Ministry has permanently closed its ambitious project for the conversion of the Mathura-Vrindavan railway line from metre gauge to broad gauge at an estimated cost of Rs 402 crore, terming it "uneconomical". The North Central Railway (NCR) zone, which has jurisdiction over the Mathura-Virndavan section, had mooted a proposal a few months ago to terminate it permanently due to opposition from locals. "The Proposal of North Central Railway regarding closure of the aforementioned uneconomical branch line of North Central Railway has been examined by the (Railway) Board. Accordingly, Competent Authority has approved permanent closure of Mathura Vrindavan section of Agra Division of North Central Railway," the Railway Ministry said in a letter dated June 6, addressed to the General Manager of the NCR zone. It further said the decision has been taken with the concurrence of the Finance Directorate of the Ministry of Railways and asked the zone to initiate necessary ...

Verify Aadhaar via app, act on fake ids used for travel: Railway Ministry

Ticket checking staff will authenticate passengers' Aadhaar IDs in real-time using the mAadhar application developed by the Unique Identification Authority of India, the Railway Ministry said in an official communication to all zones. The ministry said that the initiative has been taken after instances of individuals staying unauthorisedly in India with fake or forged Aadhaar cards and using them as identity proof for various purposes, including employment and travel, have been brought to its notice. "In order to curb impersonation and misuse of Aadhar Card, it is imperative to strengthen identity verification mechanisms. TC (Ticket checking) staff must check and verify Passenger IDs at random on every trip," the Railway Ministry said in the letter addressed to the Principal Chief Commercial Managers. It noted, "The mAadhaar application, developed by Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), is useful for easy verification. The App provides several features, including QR ...

SwaRail app now live on Android: Book tickets, track trains, and more

The Railways' all-in-one app offers secure login, bookings, parcel and freight tracking, live train status, Rail Madad, and more, now officially available on Google Play

Railways' safety planning drive faces zonal and internal challenges

21 divisions have failed to comply with timely submission of their rolling block plans, the railways have communicated to zones

Doubling of Tirupati-Pakala-Katpadi railway line in Andhra, TN approved

The project covering three Districts in two states i.e., Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu will increase the existing network of Indian Railways by about 113 Kms, said CCEA

Railway accidents drop to 81 from 400 in FY25, says Ashwini Vaishnaw

Railway safety has improved with the number of rail accidents coming down significantly to 81 in the last financial year from the 400 earlier, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw asserted on Wednesday. During the Question Hour in the Lok Sabha, he also said that continuous efforts are being made, including by way of technological and procedural changes and training methods, to further bring down the rail accidents in the country. Vaishnaw said there has been a very significant improvement in railway safety. "During Lalu ji time, there were around 700 accidents per year, during Mamata Ji's time, there were around 400 accidents, during Kharge ji's time, there were around 385 accidents...In the just closed financial year (2024-25), the number has reduced from 400 to 81, there has been a very significant improvement," he said. Lalu Prasad Yadav, Mamata Banerjee and Mallikarjun Kharge had served as railways ministers. To a query about instances of delay in filing of FIRs for crimes relat

Railways caught 21.6 mn ticketless passengers, earned Rs 562 cr: Vaishnaw

The Indian Railways has caught about 2.16 crore passengers travelling without ticket in 2023-24 and an amount of approximately Rs 562.40 crore as excess charges was realized from these travellers, the Lok Sabha was informed on Wednesday. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said this in a written reply while responding to questions raised by some members regarding the number of passengers caught without ticket during 2023-24 and other related issues. "During the year 2023-24 a total of approximately 2.16 crore passengers were detected travelling without ticket across the Indian Railways and an amount of approximately Rs 562.40 crore as excess charges (excluding fare) was realized from these passengers," Vaishnaw said When asked to provide statewise/station-wise data of ticketless travellers, Vaishnaw said that it is not maintained that way. "Special ticket checking campaigns are undertaken by zonal railways from time to time keeping in view the local conditions or as per directions ..

Lok Sabha to discuss demands for grants under Railway Ministry, Jal Shakti

Congress leaders also submitted a motion for adjournment to discuss the "affordable quality of medicines for a healthier future" and "Impact of new RBI rule on Jewel loans"

East Coast Railway starts Rs 1,000 cr fencing project to boost train speed

In a bid to enhance railway safety and facilitate increased train speed, East Coast Railway (ECoR) has initiated a more than Rs 1,000 crore fencing project along the tracks in various sections across its jurisdiction. A total of 2,792 kilometres of safety fencing work at a cost of Rs 865 crore has been undertaken to enhance safety, the ECoR said in a statement. This apart, Rs 207 crore was under sanction for track safety fencing works between Titilagarh & Lakholi and between Balangir-Theruvali-Singapur Road rail sections. These works aim to ensure safe train operations, prevent trespassing, and restrict the movement of cattle and wild animals near railway tracks, an official statement said. The ECoR has three divisions - Khurda Road, Sambalpur and Waltair. Under Khurda Road Division, the railways sanctioned Rs 388.85 crores for track safety fencing works for 1025.3 km stretch. In the next phase, a proposal is in place for safety fencing in the Jakhapura-Kendujhargarh-Nayagarh ...

Collective efforts helped us run over 16k trains for Mahakumbh: Vaishnaw

The 45-day-long religious gathering, Mahakumbh 2025, concluded on the auspicious occasion of Maha Shivratri, yet devotees continue to arrive at Prayagraj's Triveni Sangam for a holy dip

Ashwini Vaishnaw outlines steps to prevent stampedes, improve crowd control

Creating holding area at 60 stations experiencing high footfalls, a separate crowd management manual and raising awareness among passengers to not sit at stairs are among the measures being taken to prevent untoward incidents, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Monday. These initiatives are being taken in the wake of a stampede at the New Delhi Railway Station Saturday evening which killed 18 passengers, according to official figures, and left several injured. Interacting with mediapersons at the Rail Bhawan here, Vashnaw said the Railways has identified 60 stations which normally receive a high footfall and decided to make permanent or temporary holding areas outside the platforms to regulate the flow of passengers to the stations. "Sixty stations such as New Delhi, Patna, Surat, Bengaluru, Coimbatore have been identified for creating a holding area to manage the flow of passengers inside the station. They will be allowed to enter the platform according to departure of their

Centre probing if fake news caused Delhi stampede: Sukanta Majumdar

The Indian Railways announced compensation of Rs 10 lakh for the families of the deceased, Rs 2.5 lakh for the seriously injured, and Rs 1 lakh for those with minor injuries

On moral ground: Railway ministers who resigned after train tragedies

Here's a list of railway ministers who resigned, or offered to resign, following major train tragedies, taking moral responsibility for the incidents

Stampede at New Delhi Railway Station, at least 15 killed, many injured

A stampede-like situation broke out at the New Delhi railway station late on Saturday evening, triggering a chaos on platform number 14 and 15, a Delhi Fire Services (DFS) official said. Sources said three women were rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment. The incident occurred around 9:55 pm, prompting an emergency response. Authorities immediately dispatched rescue teams and four fire tenders were rushed to the site to assist in the relief efforts, DFS chief Atul Garg said. The exact cause of the stampede remains unclear, but initial reports suggest overcrowding due to train services for the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj.

Railways' capex meets targets, likely to remain at the same level

Despite not getting any additional outlay in the Budget 2025, Railways officials are not worried since their spending numbers sit well with Budget Estimates (BE) for FY25