The Hindu : SCR `ambush' stops them in their tracks

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Mar 26, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

SCR `ambush' stops them in their tracks

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, MARCH 25. Krishna was in a great hurry to reach Chennai to attend an interview. He could not get a second class reservation and purchased a general ticket but got onto a reserved bogie. He was in for a rude shock when a special squad of the South Central Railway `ambushed' him.

He was fined Rs. 50 and made to vacate the sleeper class. While the checking authorities were writing the challan, the train moved leaving Krishna helpless at the station. He was among the several ticketless travellers and those on `irregular' travel caught by the SCR special squads at the Cherlapally railway station, an hour from the city.

The ambush checks were organised as part of the SCR's intensive ticket checking drive on Thursday. Many trains touching the Cherlapally station were checked by the squads which officials clarified were done on a daily basis. Seventy members of the checking squads lay in wait for the trains to pull into the station and as they stop, passengers were asked to furnish tickets. In one hour's time, the staff arrested six persons for ticketless travelling, booked 125 cases and collected over Rs. 14,500 in fine for various offences.

"I thought I will talk to the TTE and get the seat reserved for myself on the train," a distraught Krishna said. While Krishna had to cancel his trip, another passenger travelling in the same train, Pradeep Kumar, bound for Nalgonda, was in for a bigger trouble. "I had lost my general pass and I had only Rs. 38 in cash when the ticket cost Rs. 40," explained Pradeep who was travelling without a ticket.

Srinath Reddy, travelling in Satavahana Express, was in tears explaining to officials that he had to `urgently' go to Vijayawada for a job and that he was not carrying cash. But, when he was told he would be arrested, he quickly put his hands into his pockets and took out money.

He was let off after paying the fine. "Checks are conducted at various stations on a daily basis. We have a fixed target of Rs.20,000 per month," said M. Shanker, Head TTE of a squad. Talking to newsmen, the Chief Commercial Manager of Passenger Services, K. Raghuramaiah, said in the last 11 months 70,000 trains were checked and 16.22 lakh cases booked. The amount realised was Rs. 20.22 crores. A total of 18,000 people were prosecuted out of which over 15,000 were fined and 900 jailed.

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