RailEnquiry

Patna: The operation of passenger reservation system (PCR) counters in the second shift of Sunday, which was started on August 12 under 14 locations of East Central Railway (ECR), has been temporarily suspended due to lack of support from the workers of Railway Karamchari Union.The railway board recently directed each zone to provide more facilities to passengers under PRS. But the union workers forcibly stopped the functioning of PRS at Patna Junction demanding fill-up of vacant posts of reservation-cum-commercial clerks."The railways wants to provide better and better amenities to passengers through this PRS but not willing to hear employees' grievances. That's not fair," said a union worker.According to an ECR official, railways had decided to make PRS counters functional on every Sunday in the second shift at Patna Junction, Rajendra Nagar Terminal, Ara, Buxar, Mughalsarai, Gaya, Muzaffarpur, Hajipur, Barauni, Dhanbad, Samastipur, Darbhanga, Raxaul and Khagaria junctions. Though PRS counters functioned on August 12 at these locations, the union took strong exception to this decision and got it suspended now, he said, adding unless there is a consensus over the issue the railways cannot do it alone on its own.Sources said the number of computerized PRS counters had gone up to 121 under ECR while the number of unreserved ticketing system (UTS) counters was 57 under five divisions of the zone. The Danapur division has the maximum number of PRS (35) followed by Samastipur (26), Dhanbad (25), Mughalsarai (16), Sonepur (16) and ECR headquarters (three), sources said.

An ECR official said that the union must give it a thought to the ECR's decision to make PRS counters functional at 14 different locations on every Sunday in the second shift. About nine lakh passengers have been travelling by trains from ECR per day. The PRS and the UTS counters are a boon for them, he said.

Reacting to suspension of this facility, several people who are frequently travelling by trains said it was not fair for railways to stop this facility on Sunday particularly at major stations as there are people who have to tickets on Sunday in emergency. Functioning of the PRS counters in the second shift at Patna Junction or Rajendra Nagar Terminal will prove to be a great benefit for the common people, said a Patna businessman LB Gupta.

Anjali Kumari and Sonali of Patna said, "Sunday is the day when we find it easy to book railway tickets from PRS counters either from Patna Juntcion or Rajendra Nagar Terminal. The decision of the railways to make PRS counters functional at major stations on every Sunday in the second shift was a welcome move," they said.