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In a   move to prevent misuse of Reserved Train Tickets and reduce cases of travelling on transferred tickets, Ministry of Railways has decided that anyone of the passengers/the passenger booked on the ticket issued from computerized Passenger Reservation System (PRS counters) and Internet (i-ticket) undertaking journey in AC-3 tier, AC-2 tier, 1st AC, AC Chair Car and Executive Classes willhaveto  carry one of the nine prescribed proofs of identity (in original) during the journey.  The passengers of these AC classes would be required to produce the Identity Card in original as and when required failing which all the passengers booked on that ticket will be treated as without ticket and charged accordingly.  However, the Identity Card (in original or its photocopy) will not be required at the time of purchase reserved AC tickets from PRS counters or i-ticket.  These instructions are valid for all categories of trains, with the above mentioned classes of travel.

These fresh instructions are in addition to the existing instructions under which the passengers with Tatkaltickets and e-tickets are already required  tocarry original proof of identity during the course of Railway journey.  In case of Tatkaltickets, self attested photocopy of the Identity Card is required at the time of purchase from the PRS counters or Identity Card details (Number etc.) are to be entered at the time of purchase from internet.

These instructions will come into effect from 15th February, 2012.

A message on this count will be indicated on the ticket issued in the above said classes through computerized PRS/I-ticket.

Centerfor Railway Information System (CRIS), an organization under Ministry of Railways, has been asked to make necessary provisions in the software.

The list of valid proofs of identity are as under:-

1.   Voter Photo Identity Card issued by Election Commission of India.
2.   Passport.
3.  PAN Card issued by Income Tax Department.
4.  Driving License issued by RTO.
5.  Photo Identity card having serial number issued by Central/State Government.
6.  Student Identity Card with Photograph issued by recognized School/College for their students.
7.  Nationalized Bank Passbook with Photograph.
8.  Credit Cards issued by Banks with laminated photograph.
9.  Unique Identification Card “Aadhaar”.

The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has announced the result of Special Class Railway Apprentices’ (SCRA) Examination, 2011 on the basis of result of the Special Class Railway Apprentices’ Examination, the written examination for which was held on 31st July, 2011 followed by Personality Test from 19th December, 2011 to 21st December, 2011.

Against the 42 vacancies reported by Railway Ministry,  19 General (including 02 PH-I), 13 Other Backward Classes (including 01 PH-I) 06 Scheduled Castes and 04 Scheduled Tribes (including 01 PH-I) who have been recommended by the Commission for appointment as Special Class Railway Apprentices in the Indian Railways Service of Mechanical Engineers.

The medical examination for these recommended candidates shall be conducted by the Ministry of Railways. A communication for medical examination is expected to be issued by the Ministry of Railways to the candidates individually within 21 days from the date of declaration of final result.

UPSC has a `Facilitation Counter` near the Examination Halls in its campus. Candidates can obtain relevant information/clarification regarding their examination/ recruitment on any working day between 10.00 hrs. to 17.00 hrs in person or over telephone Nos. 011-23385271 / 23381125. Result will also be available on the UPSC web site i.e. www.upsc.gov.in

The result likely to be available on the Commission’s Website within 15 days from the declaration of the final result for access to candidates.

To bring further convenience to the rail users, Indian Railways through Indian Railway Catering & Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), a Public Sector Undertaking under the Ministry of Railway, has been offering the service of booking e-ticket over the mobile phone.

After initial registration and downloading of suitable software on the mobile handset with internet facility, it will be quite easy for the mobile users to book a reserve ticket through their own mobile. After booking, the passenger will receive a reservation message with full details of the ticket including PNR, Train No, date of journey, class etc.

This virtual message would be treated at par with the print-out of the e-ticket which at present is taken out by the passengers and is known as Electronic Reservation Slip (ERS). Hence, with the virtual message, passengers would not be required to take a print-out of e-ticket to be carried with them. Showing the reservation message of the confirmed ticket on their mobile during travel will be sufficient. The detail procedure of booking through mobile which is also available on the IRCTC website (www.irctc.co.in)

• Application software has to be downloaded on to the mobile handset. This software is provided by the respective service provider firms viz., NGPAY, PAYMATE and ATOM. The application can be downloaded from IRCTC website and also from various associates of IRCTC viz. NGPAY, ATOM, Paymate. IRCTC is also likely to launch its mobile application shortly and the software will be downloadable from www.irctc.co.in.
• These mobile applications are functional on most of the GPRS/Browser based mobile phones, from basic model to high end ones.
• Internet is required on mobile phones to book tickets through mobile.
• The Passenger has to register at the time of first transaction and thereafter book the ticket using his ID and password.
• Whenever a passenger books a reserved ticket through Mobile phone, he will receive a message with full details of the ticket including PNR, Train No., date of journey, class, etc.
• This virtual message would be treated at par with the print-out of the e-ticket which at present is taken out by the passengers and is known as Electronic Reservation Slip (ERS). Hence, with this virtual message, passengers would not be required to have a printer with them to take a print-out of e-ticket to be carried with them.
• The customer is charged ticket fare, IRCTC service charge and Agent service charge (Rs.10/- & Rs.20/- as per class of tickets) and applicable payment gateway charges.
• The Service Charge is similar to e-tickets Rs.10/- for SL class and Rs.20/- for other higher class.
• All the rules applicable to e-tickets are also applicable to the reserved tickets booked through Mobile phones except that in this case, the passenger can also show the virtual message received on mobile instead of carrying ERS.
• More than a thousand users presently are availing this facility everyday. Now no need to carry Ticket Print-Out, mere display of message on Mobile is Sufficient during Travel

The total approximate earnings of Indian Railways on originating basis during the period from 1st to 10th December 2011 were Rs. 2766.31 crore compared to Rs. 2485.63 crore during the same period last year, registering an increase of 11.29 per cent.

The total goods earnings have gone up from Rs. 1662.90 crore during the period from 1st to 10th December 2010 to Rs. 1885.13 crore during 1st December – 10th December 2011, showing an increase of 13.36 per cent. The total passenger revenue earnings during the period 1st to 10th December 2011 were Rs. 774.66 crore compared to Rs. 725.04 crore during the same period last year, reflecting an increase of 6.84 per cent. The revenue earnings from other coaching amounted to Rs. 75.16 crore during this period compared to Rs. 67.61 crore during the same period last year, showing an increase of 11.17 per cent.

The total approximate numbers of passengers booked during the period 1st to 10th December 2011 were 229.51 million compared to 218.94 million during the same period last year, showing an increase of 4.83 per cent. In the suburban and non-suburban sectors, the numbers of passengers booked during 1st to 10th December, 2011 were 124.76 million and 104.75 million compared to 121.18 million and 97.76 million during the same period last year, registering an increase of 2.95 per cent and 7.15 per cent respectively.

The Ministry of Railways has decided to extend facility of existing ‘Tatkal’ scheme in all Duronto Express Trains also. Necessary instructions to this effect have been issued to all the Zonal Railways. The facility will become available in all Duronto Express Trains for journeys starting on 1st April, 2012 (from train originating station).

The extent of accommodation and charges to be realized for ‘Tatkal’ accommodation in different classes in Duronto Trains will be the same as applicable to the mail/express trains.

The Ministry of Railways has decided to specifically incorporate and indicate “Aadhaar” as one of the proofs of identity acceptable for undertaking journey on e-tickets as well as under Tatkal scheme, as “Aadhaar” is covered under the heading ‘Photo Identity Card Issued by Central/State Government’.

There for, the number of proofs of identity to be accepted for undertaking journey on e-tickets as well as under Tatkal scheme will now become 9 (nine) as mentioned below:

1. Voter Photo Identity Card issued by Election Commission of India.
2. Passport
3. PAN Card issued by Income Tax Department
4. Driving License issued by RTO
5. Photo Identity Card issued by Central/State Government
6. Student Identity Card with photograph issued by recognized School/college for their students.
7. Nationalized Bank Passbook with photograph
8. Credit Cards issued by Banks with laminated photograph and
9. Unique Identification Card “Aadhaar”

In Railway Budget 2011-12, a total number of 131 new trains were announced, out of which 68 new trains have been introduced and 63 new trains are yet to be introduced. New train services announced in Railway Budget are generally introduced during the same year.

Earnest efforts are being made to overcome various constraints like non-availability of coaching stock, non-completion of infrastructure related works, etc., for introduction of new trains announced in Railway Budget. Removal of these constraints is a continuous process.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Railways Shri K. H. Muniyappa in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today (15/12/2011).

It is proposed to set up Sports Academies on Indian Railways in Delhi, Secunderabad, Chennai, Kolkata and Mumbai. The total number of sportspersons recruited on different Zonal Railways on Indian Railways during 2008-09 was 509; during 2009-10 it was 233; during 2010-11 it was 361 in during 2011-12 (till November, 2011) it was 63 .

Recruitment of sportspersons is a continuous process. All out efforts are made to spot the talent to enable Railways to be represented in the various National and International Championships. Since, there is no separate sports cadre in Indian Railways as such there are no vacancies. Meritorious sportspersons are recruited by utilizing the vacancies of various other departments.

Railways have Zonal Railway Sports Association which keeps a close watch anticipating and assessing the needs of sportspersons in various different disciplines on their Railway. To ensure that meritorious sportspersons are given priority for recruitment, various policies are formed and special steps taken to accommodate the deserving cases. Inter Railway Championships are also held to spur Zonal Railways to recruit good talent.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Railways Shri K. H. Muniyappa in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today (15/12/2011).

X-ray scanners are sanctioned for installation at sensitive stations under Integrated Security System. At present, X-ray baggage scanners are functional at New Delhi, Delhi Main, Sarai Rohilla, Delhi Cantt., Anand Vihar, Delhi Safdarjang, Attari, Udhampur, Hazrat Nizamuddin, Jammu Tawi , Howrah, Kolkata (T), Chennai Central, Chennai Egmore, Trivandrum Central, Trichy Junction, Bhubaneswar, Madgaon, Bilaspur, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Dadar, Bhusawal, Nasik Road, Manmad, Akola, Murtizapur, Badnera, Nagpur, Pune and Miraj.

Baggage scanners have been installed at important stations to detect suspicious items and to provide visual clues of arms and ammunition, suspected explosive items, wires etc. that may be carried by a person in the luggage.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Railways Shri Bharatsinh Solanki in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today (09/12/2011).

Corporate Safety Plan (2003-2013), Ministry of Railways, inter-alia suggested for modernization of Disaster Management (DM) on Indian Railways. The main focus area are faster response, better facilities and equipment, expanding resources to meet requirements in major accidents, better customer focus and training and preparedness, etc. For modernization of DM, 18 strategies have been suggested in the Corporate Safety Plan, out of these 13 have so far been implemented as on October 31, 2011 on Indian Railways. Anti-Collision Device (ACD) project was not a part of Modernization of DM strategies. However, ACD has been provided on 1736 Route Kms on Northeast Frontier Railway as a pilot project. A new ACD Version-II [now called Train Collision Avoidance System (TCAS)] is under development and further proliferation will take place only after successful validation and certification to acceptable performance parameters.

For implementing the strategies for modernization of DM, following measures have already been taken:

• Disaster Management Plans have been made at Corporate Level, Zonal and Divisional Level and dovetailed with State/District DM Plans.
• Tie-up with reputed private/civil hospitals.
• Provision of rescue ambulances and Collapsible coffins in each Divisional hospital.
• Taking assistance of armed forces including Air-Force for assistance whenever required during disasters.
• Provision of emergency escape route and emergency automatic lights in all coaches.
• Delegation of adequate financial powers to concerned officers for quick rescue operations.
• Minimum one 140 Tonne breakdown crane have been provided in each Broad gauge division and all Accident Relief Trains (ARTs) have been provided with Air-brake stock.

The financial implication for modernization of DM on Indian Railways as per the Corporate Safety Plan is approx. Rs. 400 crore. Figures of expenditure are available on all India basis and an amount of Rs. 100.79 crore has been spent to the end of financial year 2010-11.

Pending recommendations like manufacturing of Self Propelled Accident Relief Trains (SPARTs) amounting to Rs. 235 crore, Emergency Rail cum Road Vehicle, setting up of Railway Disaster Management Institutes etc. are long lead recommendations requiring Research & Development and policy related work they are implemented at the field level.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Railways Shri Bharatsinh Solanki in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today (09/12/2011).