Starting from Wednesday, smartphones will come into play when it comes to collecting fines from ticketless travellers on the Central Railway. With assistance from a bank, Railways has developed a mobile app that will be shared with every ticket examiner of CR’s Mumbai division. This app will be launched on Wednesday, along with the provision of bodycams to 50 ticket checkers.
Confirming the development, a senior CR official said, “The app will not only prove helpful to ticketless commuters caught by ticket checkers, but also help ticket checkers. Besides, the problem of dispensing change will be also solved and the fine collection method will become more transparent.”
Details on cases of ticketless travel
Over 18 lakh cases of ticketless travel were detected and more than Rs 100 crore was collected in fines in the last financial year by the TCs of CR’s Mumbai division. Data shows that, on average, nearly 5,000 passengers travelling without a ticket are caught by TCs in this division every day.
According to a senior ticket checker of CR’s Mumbai division, there is a perennial problem of cash and change and it is the most popular excuse that offenders come up with.
“Upon being caught, around 50 per cent of offenders give excuses of not having change or cash at hand,” he said. Another ticket checker said, “Handling cash in a jam-packed local train is also a big issue. This app will definitely help us, as well as passengers.”
To deal with liquidity and change issues, some TCs use their personal accounts. With the development of a dedicated mobile app, this problem too will be solved, it is hoped.
Bodycams to be issued to 50 TCs
Another new development for TCs of the Mumbai division, CR, is that 50 of them will be equipped with bodycams, starting from Wednesday. Under this new initiative, body cameras will be placed near the shirt pockets of the TCs on duty. According to officials, the video recorded through the cameras will be stored for about a month. If any discrepancy is found in ticket checking, or complaints are registered by passengers, senior officials will review the video footage.
