CHENNAI: Private companies and individuals will no longer be able to verify journey details of rail passengers. Indian Railways has decided to withdraw the facility which allowed private persons to verify journey details of passengers by paying a small fee. The journey verification certificate, as it’s called, used to have details such as name, seat number, coach number, and proof of identity provided by passengers, apart from details of the Travelling Ticket Examiner (TTE) who authenticated the journey.
On Monday, the Railway Board issued an order to all zonal offices, directing them to terminate the journey verification services with immediate effect. Railways had been charging Rs 750 per PNR to be verified, and the service was mostly availed by private companies before approving leave travel concession for its employees.
“The board has not given any reason for withdrawal, but we suspect some private companies could have misused the provision,” a senior official said. Further, the board has clarified that if a person is seeking travel details of another passenger through an RTI application, he should furnish the consent letter of the passenger concerned.
Journey details will continue to be provided to police and court free of cost. Other government departments need to pay Rs 50 per PNR. Since March, Railways has not been pasting reservation charts on trains, to save paper and protect privacy of passengers.