CHENNAI: The number of passengers travelling in reserved coaches of express trains holding unreserved tickets in the state increased two-fold during 2023-24 compared to the previous year. Despite high demand, the railways has not been able to operate additional trains to serve unreserved travellers due to shortage of loco pilots, ticket-checking staff, and other resources, official sources said.
A total of 4.18 lakh passengers were penalised across four railway divisions in Tamil Nadu (excluding Kanniyakumari district, which falls under the Thiruvananthapuram division) during 2023-24, compared to 1.96 lakh the previous year.
Also, the railways is yet to take any decision on capping the sale of unreserved tickets for long distance trains. Currently, it sells about 600 to 700 unreserved tickets in many stations for trains that have two general class coaches. In Chennai and Salem divisions, as many as 400 to 500 passengers, found travelling in reserved coaches of trains heading to northern and northeastern states were deboarded and penalised repeatedly last year.
A section of rail passengers’ representatives has called for additional Antyodaya or MEMU Express trains on short routes such as Chennai-Tiruchy, Chennai-Salem, and Salem-Coimbatore, as well as to northern and northeastern states. However, railway officials stated that any decision on new trains would have to be made only by the railway board.
As per data, 295% hike in unreserved passengers in Salem Railway division
Official data obtained by TNIE through an RTI request shows that among the four railway divisions in Tamil Nadu, the Salem division saw a staggering 295% increase in general class passengers travelling in reserved coaches compared to the previous year.
The number of passengers penalised for travelling in reserved coaches rose from 28,998 in 2022-23 to 1.14 lakh in 2023-24. In the Chennai division, 2.2 lakh travellers were penalised in 2023-24, up from 1.3 lakh the previous year, a 70% increase. Similarly, in the Madurai division, 48,485 passengers were fined in 2023-24, compared to 22,010 the previous year.
The Tiruchy division also recorded a 130% increase in penalties, with 34,651 passengers fined in 2023-24, up from 14,939 in 2022-23. The railway officials said additional MEMU trains have been operated on Chennai-Tiruchy section during festivals and weekends recently to meet demand, but any restriction on unreserved tickets can be decided only by the railway board.
The railway ministry has already announced plans to build more unreserved coaches and revise their composition based on demand, added the official. The state faces a huge transportation demand for buses and trains from Chennai to the delta, southern, and western districts, driven by high intrastate migration for education, jobs, medical treatment, and other reasons. Commuters who cannot afford Omni buses, AC train berths, or flight tickets and last minute travellers mostly rely on unreserved coaches and buses.
Sources told TNIE that based on the ticket reservation data, the railways’ commercial department suggests additional trains during extended holidays and weekends. However, the divisions are unable to operate new trains mainly due to crew shortage.
A Giri, former member of the Divisional Rail Users Consultative Committee (DRUCC) for the Tiruchy division, stated that the railways have sophisticated software containing data on routes with high demand for unreserved passengers.
"Operating Antyodaya Express trains in those sections will help reduce the number of unreserved passengers entering reserved coaches," he said.
Giri further noted that unauthorised travel is particularly high in the Chennai and Salem divisions, mainly due to guest workers occupying reserved coaches on trains in Katpadi, Salem, Tiruppur, and Coimbatore. "Railway officials have been showing reluctance to resolve this issue for several years. The railway must step in to address this crisis at the earliest," said Giri.
Naina Masilamani, a member of the ZRUCC for Southern Railway suggested that the railways increase fast passenger and MEMU services on the Arakkonam-Salem section to reduce congestion in reserved coaches.
As per official data, Southern Railway carried about 19.4 lakh passengers per day during 2023-24, with nearly 10.5 lakh of them travelling in the Chennai suburban area. However, during 2022-23, the per-day patronage was nearly 18 lakh passengers a day.