Mumbai: According to data released by the Central Railway Mumbai Division on Monday, the number of passengers caught traveling without proper tickets has decreased. However, this positive trend has been overshadowed by a significant increase in cases of passengers traveling with unbooked luggage.
In August 2022, ticket checkers of the Mumbai Division of Central Railway apprehended a total of 2.28 lakh passengers traveling without valid tickets. This year, that number has seen a decrease, with 2.05 lakh passengers caught without proper tickets during the same month.
The data further highlights that cases of ticketless travel have decreased by 23,000 compared to the previous year. However, during this same period, the instances of passengers traveling with unbooked luggage have increased dramatically. In August 2023, a staggering 1.07 lakh passengers were caught with unbooked luggage, nearly double the 64,000 cases reported during the same period in 2022.
Checking efforts help reduce defaulters
Senior officials from Central Railway have attributed this decline in ticketless travel to their intensive ticket checking efforts in suburban trains as well as Mail Express services. They emphasized their commitment to providing comfortable travel and better services to genuine rail users. These senior officers are closely monitoring revenue losses due to ticketless travel and other irregularities, with the aim of further reducing such incidents.
Regarding the increase in unbooked luggage cases, officials acknowledged that some passengers may be avoiding luggage booking for various reasons, but they emphasized the increased vigilance of their checking staff in catching these offenders.
Officials also appealed to passengers to travel with dignity and proper tickets, noting that excess luggage can inconvenience fellow passengers. They encouraged passengers to book their luggage before embarking on their journeys.
However, some passengers have voiced concerns about the reduction in ticketless travel cases. They believe that the absence of permanent ticket checkers on air-conditioned local trains is a contributing factor.
Sharad Malhotra, a 45-year-old frequent air-conditioned local train traveler on the Central Railway, observed that ticket checkers often detected numerous cases of passengers traveling without proper tickets when they were present on the train. Malhotra believes that despite the presence of these ticketless travelers, many might go undetected due to uncontrolled entry and exit points at stations and the unavailability of ticket checkers on the train.
