RailEnquiry

SURAT: Despite ministry of railways initiating steps under the tatkal scheme to curb the menace of touts and agents hanging around the ticket reservation counters, there is no respite for the passengers in the city.While the new rule stipulates that no authorized agents, including the IRCTC agents are allowed to book tatkal tickets from 10 am to 12 noon from the counters as well as on the internet, touts and agents are literally dominating the computerized passenger reservation system (PRS) counters at Surat railway station.The booking of tatkal tickets starts at 10 am on the day before the train starts its journey from the originating station. Earlier, the bookings for tatkal tickets started at 8 am. There are three computerized PRS centres in the city - one at railway station and two at Athwagate and Udhna."For obtaining tatkal tickets, one has to produce self-attested photocopy of any one of the nine prescribed proofs of identity mentioned in the scheme. The touts and agents are producing authority letters from passengers and their ID proof photocopies to show they are relatives of the passengers," member of the Zonal Railway Users Consultative Committee (ZRUCC) Wahab Belim said.Belim added, "It is the responsibility of Railway Protection Force (RPF) to ensure the counters are free from such people. RPF does conduct raids and arrests the touts, but next day they start again after getting bail from the court."

A textile businessmen Rakesh Sharma, who wanted a tatkal ticket for Delhi, complained recently when he arrived at the counter on Friday. Two persons standing in the line were soon joined by six others, all claiming to have been in the queue already. When he tried to stop the touts, he was threatened.

An RPF official, who did not wanted to be named, said, "In the last 11 months, the department has arrested 24 touts from PRS counters. We have been regularly conducting surprise checks during morning hours. Even the passengers who are being harassed by them should contact the RPF immediately."