VIJAYAWADA: Over 4.73 lakh was collected from fines during a massive ticket checking drive conducted by the Vijayawada Division of South Central Railway (SCR) across 30 important stations in the division on Saturday. The drive was conducted to curb ticket-less travel and unbooked luggage. As many as 70 ticket checking staff participated in the drive, which was conducted under the supervision of the senior divisional commercial manager, Vijayawada division.
During the drive, 30 express trains and a few passenger trains were checked and Rs 4.73 lakh was realised from 904 cases of travelling without ticket, irregular travel and unbooked luggage. Five persons were fined Rs 1,000 for not wearing a mask during the journey. In the month of July, 47 people were fined for not wearing a mask and Rs 7,800 was realised by the ticket checking staff. Passengers were requested to adhere strictly to the COVID-19 guidelines.
Meanwhile, the SCR also issued travel guidelines in view of the recent surge in Covid cases in Kerala. Tamil Nadu and Karnataka governments have made it mandatory to carry RT-PCR test reports for all passengers arriving from Kerala. All passengers have also been advised to visit the IRCTC website before commencing their journey to know the protocol to be followed at any of the destination States.